Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble
by Tuxedo Will
Summary: An aspiring chef bakes up a batch of trouble when the Sailor Scouts help Raye raise money for the temple on New Year's Eve. The cookie really crumbles when things start to go awry.
1. Chapter 1 Best Laid Plans

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**Authors' Forewords:**

Yes, we are using the DiC dub universe. It is intentional for a number of reasons. Therefore, this story is set in that wonderful little bit of _North America_ in Tokyo. :) Serena is not Usagi. There are differences. However, when there are areas covered in our story, which are not referenced by DiC® (by the second season), we will use the original or _Adventures of the Chibi-Scouts'_ names.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comment are welcomed and encouraged.**

Rating: **PG**

**Chapter 1 - Best Laid Plans**

**S**ince before dawn on that cold and snowy New Year's Eve, Lita Kino (clandestine Sailor Scout of Jupiter) had been busy baking dozens of cookies. It was the start of what she knew would be a very long and hoped fulfilling day. These particular cookies were destined for the bake sale that evening that Raye organized at the Cherry Hill Temple. It was part of their annual New Year's festivities.

The tall brunette and her other Sailor Scout friends had happily volunteered to help Raye and spend the night. Her friends Serena and Mina had cheered the fact that they were going to get the opportunity to wear pretty priestess garb while selling all those tasty goodies. The Scout of Mars, of course, was less than enthusiastic about the prospect and bemoaned Serena's presence at the entire affair. The typically ditzy blonde with her meatball-styled hairdo and long flowing pigtails managed to enrage Raye by simply ignoring the normal barb. Lita was happy about that -- Raye and Serena continuously bickering was not something that she wanted to endure all night.

It was near lunchtime. The teenager thought that she'd get one more batch in the oven before stopping for a snack when she heard a knock on her door. 'Damn! Who could that be?' She wasn't due to meet the girls for hours. Puzzled, the fourteen year old wiped her hands on her apron and went to answer the door. When she opened it, she was mildly surprised to see Reenie standing at the door.

The seven year old girl from the future had vibrantly pink hair done up in cone-shaped meatballs and puffy pigtails. Her deep amber eyes looked almost red. The youngster was dressed in jacket, wool hat and mittens, along with her boots but she also had a depressed air about her. Luna Ball, Reenie's constant floating companion, floated almost resignedly behind its young mistress.

"Hey chum, why so glum?" Lita asked as she ushered the child into her apartment after looking down the corridor to make sure the girl was alone. "And where's Serena?"

"Hi Lita," Reenie said, pulling off her hat. "That Meatball Head is at home."

'Oh boy...' "You two have a fight?" Lita wondered. She internally sighed as the little girl before her nodded. Sometimes Lita wished that she had a big sister that she could argue with and then make up with. A role model. Someone to be there for you through thick and thin. Mina thought that living alone in your very own apartment was cool but she knew firsthand it wasn't. It could get very lonely, especially around special occasions. As Reenie handed the teen her jacket, Lita asked, "Reenie, did you get that for Christmas?" She pointed to the new black turtleneck sweater the child had been wearing under her jacket.

"Yeah," Reenie replied, "Serena got it for me." While Lita hung up her jacket, the youngster gathered Luna Ball into her arms and hugged it. The little girl was also dressed in bluejeans and pink socks with embroidered pictures of bunnies on the sides. Lita, on the other hand, wore an apron over a set of jeans and a favorite old T-shirt. She planned to clean up, take a nap, and change into something better suited before she went to the temple.

"What'd you two fight about this time?" the Sailor Scout of Jupiter questioned as she patted a stool beside the kitchen counter. Reenie clambered up and eyed one of the still-warm chocolate chip cookies hopefully. Smiling, the teen motioned for her visitor to take one.

Her young guest chewed on the cookie for a moment and then exclaimed, "She treats me like a baby!" Lita raised an eyebrow but didn't speak. "And then, Auntie Ellen sides with Meatball Head and tells me if I'm gonna act like a baby, I can't go tonight!" 'It was all Serena's fault! She knocked Luna Ball away before I could use it and then, Aunt Ellen and Uncle Ken went out...' Her forehead wrinkled in a frown.

"I see... So you snuck out and came over here instead?" Lita deduced, frowning slightly. When her guest nodded, she asked, "Won't your aunt get upset with you?"

"I didn't sneak out... I just sorta said I was going outside to play."

"And came over here," Lita remarked dryly.

"Serena won't find out..." the youngster protested.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, she's probably pigging out on stuff." Deciding to change the subject, she commented, "Auntie Ellen and Uncle Ken went to get some stuff for tonight. They're going to a different party or something."

"And you don't think creeping over here without telling Serena is going to tick her off? Especially if she's supposed to be watching you?"

The girl shrugged. "I think Serena was just bein' mean to me. You're _so_ lucky, Lita."

Lita briefly considered the wisdom of getting into the middle of an argument between Reenie and Serena but dismissed the notion. She had always stood by Serena and Reenie being a child tended to exaggerate things. "What did she do, Reenie?" the young woman asked.

The little girl's nostrils flared. "She said if I wanted to go to the temple tonight, I had to take a NAP after lunch, take my bath, and then WEAR my '_jammies_' to the temple!"

"Sounds pretty reasonable to me, Reenie." Her young friend glared. "Well, it does."

"**I'M NOT A BABY!**" Reenie shouted and thrust Luna Ball away. The black orb retreated by rolling across the floor and hiding under Lita's chair.

"You're seven," the brunette commented in a tone that implied she thought Reenie was acting much younger at that moment.

"Seven and a half. 'Sides, in school," Reenie expounded, "We learned that people here in Japan celebrate being a year older on New Year's Day because it was a new year so really I'll be EIGHT tomorrow."

Lita chuckled. "Reenie! That sounds like something I'd tell my mom!" She snorted. "She still would've made me do all the things Serena told you that you'd have to do." Lita considered, "Actually if I was that sassy with her, I would've been in real hot water." The youngster's cheeks reddened slightly. "Okay, Reenie, what's really bugging you?" The little girl shrugged and quickly stuffed the rest of the cookie in her mouth. "Is it the pajamas?"

Reenie stared down at her swinging feet, hands folded in her lap, and asked softly, "Lita, do you miss your mommy?"

The brunette felt her heart skip a beat. "All the time, kiddo. I miss both my parents a lot." She reached out, picked a cookie up, and took a bite of it before continuing, "I'd give all this up..." She gestured to her apartment. "If I could have them back... even for a little while." She took another bite. "You know, I'm actually kinda jealous of you."

Reenie's head came up and she stared at the older girl. "Huh?"

"Sometimes I kinda wish that I was you, Reenie. No, I don't mean I'd want the Negaverse chasing after me but having Serena around to hold me when I got scared or just hang out and have fun with..." Lita shook her head. "I know it sounds kinda sappy. Serena is good-hearted though. She'd forgive anybody anything." The pink-haired girl frowned. "Sure, she would. You know it's true. She forgave you when you took the Imperium Silver Crystal, didn't she?"

"Yeah, I s'ppose," the pink-haired girl admitted softly.

"Kiddo, can I ask you something?" The youngster nodded. "Why did you get all bent out of shape about what Serena asked you to do?"

Reenie frowned, pressed her lips together, and looked as if she wasn't going to answer when she grated out, "I'm a princess. I'm s'pposed to be a fine lady like my mommy." She glowered at the tall brunette beside her. "I can't do that taking a nap or wearing my '_jammies_' out in public... even if they are hidden." This last part was said with derision.

"How many people know you're a princess?"

"Lots!"

"I meant in this time," the teenager persisted.

"I guess just the Sailor Scouts," Reenie admitted although she didn't seem too happy about it.

The little girl started reaching for another cookie but Lita stopped her with a stern stare. "Those are for the bake sale tonight, Reenie. Let me make us some hot soup and we can have lunch."

"'Kay."

The tall teen hummed to herself watching carefully just to make sure that Reenie didn't try to snag any more cookies. "Maybe after lunch, Reenie," Lita offered a few minutes later as she placed a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup before her guest, "You can help me make up another batch of cookies?"

"Yeah!" Reenie squeaked excitedly. She started eating her soup and then paused. "Lita?"

"Hmmm?"

"If you... I mean if you me, would you have done what Serena told ya to?"

"When's your normal bedtime?"

The seven year old blushed. "7:30," she eventually answered.

"So, you're staying up with us until at least midnight, probably later. You're gonna have lotsa fun and get to eat lots of cool stuff. I think taking a nap and wearing my PJs would've been worth it." Lita regarded her for a long moment. "I guess you got to do a lot more stuff as a princess though, so maybe staying up past my bedtime and eating as many goodies as you want isn't so special."

"Uh..." the pink-haired girl began and started eating again. Truth be told, Reenie had much more freedom here in the past than she did in Crystal Tokyo so tonight was, had been, a well-anticipated treat. Melissa wasn't being allowed to stay up. Reenie's best friend had been more than a little jealous of her when she found out that Reenie would be. Now though, she was most assuredly not going to be and she'd have to confess to Melissa when school started again.

"I never was a princess, Reenie," Lita declared. "But you might wanna ask Serena."

"Eh?!" Reenie asked in complete bewilderment, "Please... Serena ain't no princess!"

"You bet your pigtails she is," Lita disagreed in a rather serious tone. Reenie just stared. "Why do you think Serena has the Silver Crystal?" The brunette tried hard not to laugh as girl gawked at her in stunned confusion. "Didn't your parents tell you about the Silver Millennium?"

"Only a little," Reenie admitted, frowning now, "It was ruled by Queen Serenity and there was a big battle."

"That's right," Lita replied nodding. "Queen Serenity ruled Moon Kingdom during the Silver Millennium. She had a grown daughter, Princess Serenity. Prince Endymion (the Prince from Earth) loved Serenity very much and they were to be wed." Lita stopped, took a large breath, and reconsidered the story.

"What happened?!" Reenie asked, eyes wide and face showing complete attention.

"Well," Lita reconsidered, "If your parents didn't tell you..."

"LI-TA!" the little girl whined, "You can't just stop there!"

The teenager sighed then shrugged. "The Negaverse. There was trouble on Earth from Queen Beryl, servant of the great demon Queen Metallia, was working to conquer Earth and the Moon plus she wanted Prince Endymion for herself." Lita shivered. She didn't like thinking about Beryl. "But she couldn't find him. The Prince had gone secretly to the Moon to meet Princess Serenity one last time before going off to face Beryl."

"Come on, Lita!" Reenie demanded, bouncing up and down on the stool, "Don't stop!"

Lita, much to the seven year old's annoyance, turned and rummaged in the refrigerator for a moment before bringing out a can of diet soda. Breaking it open, she took a long swallow and sighed. "Well... Prince Endymion snuck into the Palace on the Moon and met secretly with Princess Serenity. Their meeting was short 'cause Queen Beryl and her Negaverse army attacked the Palace!" 'If that kid's eyes get any bigger, they're going to explode,' Lita thought to herself before taking another drink of her soda. "There was a terrible fight and finally to save her daughter and Prince Endymion, Queen Serenity used the Imperium Silver Crystal to send them and her court into the future so they wouldn't be captured."

Reenie was quiet for a long time. Long enough that Lita was growing worried when the little girl asked, "So Serena is Princess Serenity?" It seemed impossible but given what Lita said...

"Yeah," the adolescent answered, "But because of the Imperium Silver Crystal, Serena needs to... power up, like she does when she's Sailor Moon."

"What happened to Queen Beryl?" the youngster asked, "Daddy said that Sailor Moon defeated her."

"That's right, but she was in her princess form. She was Princess Serenity."

"Oh..." Reenie appeared to be mulling that over.

"So you see, Reenie, if you need to talk over any princess stuff, Serena will listen. She certainly isn't going to assume anything." Her little visitor blinked in confusion. "Kiddo, when I first met Serena, I had a reputation of being a bully, a tough girl who didn't like anybody or anything."

"But you're not!" Reenie protested.

"Well, I wasn't the nicest person in the world either. I didn't have any friends. People were scared of me. I'd been kicked out of two schools for fighting and on my way to be kicked out of Crossroads too..." Lita countered. The child couldn't believe it. "But when I met Serena, she decided she was going to be my friend. If it wasn't for her... Well, I didn't make it easy but we're friends now and Sailor Scouts too. I wish we could've been friends when we were little." There was a small pause and then the brunette added softly, "I'd do anything for her." She gave Reenie a hard look that made the youngster squirm. "Me and Mina, Amy, and even Raye would do anything to help Serena out of a jam. And Serena would do anything to help us or you out, Reenie. Think about that. This is the gal that used the Silver Crystal to kick Queen Beryl's butt and saved all of us and she loves you."

- - - - -

Shortly after one that afternoon, Serena Tsukino had just come down the stairs and turned towards the living room when the front door opened. In came her mother. The blonde was about to say something when she got a jolt as she saw Reenie and her floating companion trailing behind her mother. Her father Ken followed the little girl carrying the packages from their shopping trip.

"What..." Serena began and then putting her hands on her hips demanded, "Where were you?!"

"Shopping?" Her father asked, even her mother looked puzzled.

"No... HER!" Serena declared jabbing a finger at Reenie.

The seven year old took on a look of angelic innocence. "I was outside."

"No, you weren't," the teenager countered, "I looked, and you weren't there. I even went outside and circled around the house and checked the street." Ken quietly left the trio of females and headed for the kitchen.

Meanwhile Reenie started industriously to remove her boots. Serena's mother however got a puzzled look, which turned into a frown, which eventually deepened into a scowl.

"So," Ellen asked quietly, "You didn't tell her that she could go to Lita's?"

"NUHUH!" the teenager declared while shaking her head.

"Reenie Serenity," her aunt began, turning her full attention to the pink-haired youngster who was peeling out of her jacket, "You get your butt up into your room and STAY there." Ken, drawn by the sharpness of his wife's tone came back out into the hall, burden free.

"Yes Auntie," Reenie said miserably.

"Reenie, you snuck out?" Serena asked in worried tones. 'Maybe it was the Negaverse.' After a moment, she shook her head mentally. 'Nah, they're way noisier.'

"To Lita's apartment," her mother answered for her, eyeing Reenie as the seven year old disappeared up the stairs. "She was apparently there baking cookies with Lita all morning, Serena." Ellen Tsukino took her own coat off and added, "Your father and I were driving home and spotted Reenie walking down the sidewalk."

"And how are we supposed to trust you if you can't keep an eye on her for only a little bit?" Ken asked his daughter. Sammy, Serena's little brother, seemed to appear out of thin air with an anticipatory grin on his face.

"Screwed up again, huh Meatball Head?" His sister glowered.

"I majorly didn't tell her that she could go, Mom," Serena said hastily, "I didn't even know she had left the yard!" The teenager blushed slightly. "Sorry." 'That's it for all those yummy cookies.'

Ellen stared at her fourteen year old daughter for several moments. "It's certainly not your fault that Reenie can't seem to understand that she's seven and not seventeen." The mother of two shook her head. "I can't even understand why I give Reenie more leeway than I ever did you or Sammy at that age." Her mother frowned. "That doesn't mean you're off the hook, young lady." The teenager winced. "How can I trust you when you can't even watch Reenie for a few hours alone? Maybe I should ground you along with her."

"I guess..." the blonde offered resignedly, "I'm babysitting tonight then?" She squirmed when her mother gave her a long hard look. "Please, Mom, why should I get nailed for something the Pink Spore did?" Serena begged. The teen felt her plans for that evening evaporate away as her mother put her hands on her hips. "I'll go call Raye and let her know I can't come tonight. I guess I really messed up."

"How do you figure that, Serena?" Ken asked, not entirely sure what his wife was playing at.

"Well Dad..." Serena twisted her fingers together and shifted from foot to foot. "See, me and Reenie were arguing and if I just hadn't of said anything..." She trailed off at her mother's stern look turned into one of exasperation.

"Sweetheart, what you were asking was reasonable. Your father and I would have gotten you a babysitter at her age and you would have gone to bed at your normal time." Ellen snorted, "The fact is that Reenie thinks she's entitled to special privileges that she's not." Ellen sighed. "Serena, you can go to Raye's tonight. Your father and I can stay home."

Ken decided that he needed to step in, "Err... I'm working tonight."

Serena and Sammy blinked. His wife frowned and then sighed. "Then I'll stay home."

"Honey, it's a business social. If you don't come too, I'll look silly. Especially considering that you know the hosts better than me."

"We can't leave Reenie here by herself, Ken."

"Oh..." the pigtailed teen chewed on her lip, "Could I um... like maybe suggest something, Mom?"

"What?" Ellen asked, looking at her daughter curiously. Serena was not the brightest bulb in the box.

"Well... What if... um... What if you let Reenie come with me to Raye's temple tonight and after we get back tomorrow, you can ground her." The petite blonde poked her index fingers nervously together as her mother pondered her suggestion. "See that way we could go and you guys could go out too and..."

Her mother stood there gazing at her for such a long time that the teen thought her mother was going to explode. She didn't. Instead, the mother of two turned towards the stairs and commanded, "Come with me, Serena." Puzzled, she followed. Sammy gave his father a quizzical look but Ken only shrugged -- girls were still weird.

When they entered Reenie's room, the little girl looked up, worried and miserable looking. Ellen paused, hands on hips, and in the sternest voice she could muster, loomed over the seven year old. "I don't like being lied to, young lady, so I want the truth now."

"Yes, Auntie Ellen," Reenie replied softly.

"Did Serena tell you that you could go to Lita's?" A shake of the head.

"Then WHAT were you doing at Lita's?" The pink-haired girl flinched. The words came out like the crack of a whip.

Serena became alarmed when Reenie quipped without giving the answer any forethought. "Well, Serena said I could go outside... but she didn't say I _COULDN'T_ go to Lita's."

"Why you little..." Serena began and then stopped at her mother's look. Silence filled the room and as the seconds passed and as the silence deepened, Reenie began to squirm.

Finally, Ellen sighed. "Serena, I want to talk with Reenie alone please." The teenager gave her cousin a lethal look and stalked from the room, not quite banging the door behind her. Ellen walked over and sat on Reenie's bed. "Sweetheart, I'm not really sure you deserve to go to Raye's tonight."

"But Auntie, you said I could go!" the little girl protested.

"Young lady," her aunt began in a voice that was starting to sound impatient. "Let me give you some facts. You are SEVEN, understand?"

"Yes, Aunt Ellen," Reenie said miserably, lowering her head.

"You are a guest in MY home, understand?"

"Yes, Aunt Ellen."

"I also do not tolerate misbehavior, ESPECIALLY backtalk from anybody, ESPECIALLY little girls."

"Yes, Aunt Ellen," the youngster whispered. She wanted to crawl under a rock.

"I do not let sassy little girls go to special public events. And whether you like it or not, it is MY choice whether you get to go or not, clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am." The Princess from the future was heartily wishing that she hadn't fought with Serena that morning.

The mother of two went smoothly on. "Serena has made a suggestion which I'm not completely sure I should support." Reenie stare at her in worry. "She thinks that I should let you go to the temple with her tonight and when you come home tomorrow, ground you."

The pink-haired girl suppressed the surge of hope that rushed upwards; she wasn't out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination. Her aunt was madder than she'd ever seen her before, well at least at her specifically.

"I am not in the habit of rewarding naughty children, understand?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Reenie squeaked.

The mother of two gave the youngster a long, considering look and then nodded once. "I'm going to be crystal clear about this, Reenie. You may go with Serena tonight. Tomorrow when you come home, you'll be grounded to your room."

"For how long?"

"That depends on the type of report that Serena gives me tomorrow."

"Yes Auntie," was all Reenie dared say.

"Serena is the boss tonight," Ellen instructed firmly, "I mean it, young lady. You do WHAT you're told WHEN you're told, clear? I expect you to be on your best behavior, no backtalk, no arguing."

"I'll be on my best behavior," Reenie promised and crossed her heart with her hand.

"I expect it," her aunt explained, "Because if you're not, Serena is going to call me." Reenie winced. "And when I get you home..." she trailed off but the little girl didn't need her aunt to elaborate further.

"Yes, ma'am, I understand." The seven year old shifted uneasily. "My best behavior."

"Fine," Ellen said while standing, "I'm going to talk with Serena now. You stay here until she comes to get you." The pink-haired girl nodded.

- - - - -

"Mo-th-er...!" Mina Aino whined as she stood in the living room of her home. "I'm going over to help Raye, not go _snog_ some guy."

"Snog?"

"It's British, and means '_kiss_.'" 'Jeez, we lived there a year.'

"I know you're going to date..." 'Boy, do I know you're going to date!' Mrs. Aino thought before adding, "I just said that I expect you to spend the whole night at the temple." She remarked dryly, "While you're there, Mina, you might also want to pray to the Kamis for better grades."

"Come on, Mom, my grades weren't THAT bad!" Mina protested, brushing some of her long blond hair behind her ear. "I got an 'A' in PE!"

Her mother folded her arms and gave her daughter a dubious expression. "Mina, I talked to Mrs. Tsukino and most of your grades were lower than Serena's." She tried not to smirk as her fourteen year old daughter gaped.

"Well... It's only a midterm report card..." Mina protested.

"And that should be an excuse?"

"MO-THER!"

Mina's mother relented. "All right, Mina, I won't say another word about your grades. I AM warning you though, you turn in this type of report card next time like you did this time and it's summer school for you."

"Okay," Mina agreed gloomily. She watched as her mother left the living room. Sighing, the Sailor Scout of Venus flopped onto the couch and crossed her arms.

Just then, Artemis and Luna, the two Lunar Cat advisors, came into the room. "Hey, you two!" Mina greeted, "Got any plans for tonight?"

"We are going to investigate a possible source of '_Negaenergy_,'" Luna announced primly.

"Yeah right," Mina snorted. Artemis glowered.

"We are, Mina," he declared, sitting down, "We need to keep ahead of the Negaverse. We can't rest just because it's a holiday."

"Un-huh..."

"We are a dedicated team," Luna commented, "Unlike SOME people." She sighed. "I do not know how Serena can be so lazy."

"Well, I need to get ready," Mina announced, not willing to listen to a diatribe about her princess. "Artemis, the cream is in the fridge like you asked and the movie you wanted is on Channel 178 at eight o'clock. Enjoy your date." She smiled as Luna began sputtering in the background.

- - - - -

"So you're going to volunteer tonight at the Cherry Hill Temple?" The Sailor Scout of Mercury looked up from her trigonometry textbook as her mother came into the kitchen.

"Yes, Mother. It promises to be an enjoyable experience," Amy stated. She looked at her watch. "Actually, I should get ready. I'll likely be late as it is and Raye is already stressed about it as it is."

Dr. Anderson grinned. "I suppose she would be. Miss Hino is a very conscientious young woman." 'And a good role model for you. I'm not so sure about her grandfather.' "Who else is helping her?"

"Lita, Mina, and Serena."

"Serena?" her mother questioned. "From what I understand, Raye and Serena don't get along."

"They... do like each other, Mother," Amy pointed out carefully, "Raye just wishes that Serena would work harder and take things more seriously."

'As do I.' "What about you?"

"Academically, yes, Mother, she could work harder," the blue-haired teen admitted. "Of course, study is not her strong suit. Serena is an extremely caring person with the biggest heart I've seen." She paused and then continued her analysis, "She's also one of the most naïve as well. I guess that's why I like her." She glanced towards her mother. "I am concerned that you disapprove of me hanging out with Serena."

"I was a little worried, admittedly, Amy, but I trust your judgment. I think you complement each other well." There was no denying the improvement since the cheerful pigtailed blonde had befriended her daughter.

"Are you dropping by tonight?" Amy asked her mother.

"I think I will, Amy. I have nothing much planned tonight unless the hospital gets overloaded and I'm called in."

Amy smiled. "Good. Well, Mother, I should get ready and go now or Raye's going to start pulling her hair out by the roots."

End of Chapter 1

Coming next in **Chapter 2 - The Calm Before the Scramble**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	2. Chapter 2 The Calm Before the Scramble

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 2 - The Calm Before the Scramble**

Raye Hino, Shinto priestess of the Cherry Hill Temple, gazed over the trays of cookies laid out before her in the temple's kitchen. Row upon row of chocolate chip, peanut butter, walnut, oatmeal, crème, and other assorted cookies as well as other confections sat waiting to be sold. The raven-haired teen turned to the chef.

"Lita, you really went all out for us. I can't tell you how much I... we appreciate this..." Raye frowned a little. "Or were you anticipating Serena eating _a lot_ of them?"

"Don't worry, Raye." The brunette grinned and held up a large jar filled with loose cookies. "THESE are for us."

"Good planning," Raye commented. "You better go hide them, Lita."

"Hide what?" asked a voice. The duo turned and saw Reenie stroll into the kitchen followed by her floating companion.

"Hi," Lita called, "Where's Serena?"

"You know Serena. She smelled ice cream..." The youngster shrugged and dropped the second bag she had been carrying to the floor, "So what were you gonna hide?"

"The cookies that Lita made for us to share," Raye replied. "I don't want Serena snarfing them down while you're selling them too; it'd look bad." Reenie started to giggle but stopped while nervously looking around for her fourteen year old "_cousin_".

"Good idea!" Reenie remarked then asked, "Lita, can I help you hide 'em?"

"Sure you can, Reenie," Lita remarked with a grin.

"Oh, they look so yummy!"

"This is the batch that you helped me with," the tall teen replied with a big grin pointing to the jar. "Let's go get these put away and you can drop your bag in Raye's room." She cast a look at the second bag on the floor. "Is that Serena's?" The little girl nodded.

"She made you carry it?" Raye asked in a disgusted tone of voice. Annoying or not, Reenie was still just a little kid.

"No, I offered..." With that, the younger girl hefted the bag. "Come on, Lita, let's go hide those before her royal piggy-ness finds them."

- - - - -

The pink-haired girl followed Lita into Raye's bedroom. "Now where would be a good place to hide 'em from our _fearless leader_?" Lita wondered rhetorically. She then regarded Reenie. The little girl was wearing a set of jeans and what looked suspiciously like one of Serena's sweaters. "Is that Serena's?" Lita asked.

"Nuh huh..." Puffy pink pigtails flopped back and forth, as Reenie shook her head. "Darien got it for me." She frowned. "It's a little big," she admitted. "I think he actually got it for Serena and then forgot he broke up with her." Her frown deepened. "How he could forget something like that..." Not that she thought Darien should be dating her ditzy cousin but Serena didn't deserve his callous treatment of her either.

"So he gave it to you?" Reenie nodded, which made Lita wonder silently, 'Why does he buy her stuff? Serena can't be right... Can she?' The teenager sighed and shook her head. Luna Ball, who had been floating behind the little girl, silently guided over to the bed and landed on a set of red and white robes.

"Are these the robes we're gonna wear?" the youngster asked instead.

"Yeah..." came the muffled response from the teen who had her head poked into Raye's closet.

"Good, I'm gonna get ready," Reenie announced and grabbed a set of robes that looked as if they'd fit.

"Kiddo, hold on... We don't start until eight. You got lots of time."

"I wanna make sure Serena knows I'm helping," the seven year old declared from under the top white portion of the robe. "Boy, these things gots lotsa room." The teenager looked and grinned. The set of robes that Reenie was attempting to put on were meant for Serena.

'I won't spoil her fun,' Lita decided and once again started for a good place to stash the sweet treats.

- - - - -

"Hi gang!" Mina chirped brightly as she bounced into the kitchen where Raye was standing guard over the cookies. Meanwhile, Serena was grumbling to herself about the unfairness of it all. The meatball-headed blonde hadn't been allowed a single cookie.

"Okay, Raye, Mina's here. I wanna cookie!" Serena declared.

"Amy's NOT here and you'd horde the lot," Raye reported then turned toward the new arrival. "Hi Mina, you seem pumped."

"Sure am. There are lots of cute hunks out there just waiting for the '_Goddess of Love_' to come into their life." She struck a pose.

"Goddess of Love?" Serena asked trying to hold back a snicker. Raye looked ill.

"Yeah, me!" the beribboned blonde squealed. "After all, I am Sailor Venus." She winked and blew a kiss.

"Oh brother," Raye remarked, rolling her eyes.

- - - - -

Sometime later, Amy Anderson trotted up the steps leading to the Cherry Hill Temple. The fourteen year old had opted for an aquamarine-colored dress and because it was cold, a set of white legwarmers. For a bit more color, she added a small yellow sash around her waist. She was carrying her biology textbook, which she hoped to study, to stay nine chapters ahead when Ms. Haruna's class began after the break. Knowing her friends, it was unlikely that she'd get the chance to study it. Nevertheless, it was always best to be prepared.

The warm glow of lanterns ahead pushed back thoughts of school and the encroaching darkness of that cold December night. The teen could hear voices calling to each other and as she mounted the last step, she paused looking about her. The temple grounds were scattered with various stalls in the final stages of construction. The stall operators were rushing about, making sure things were set, and that their booths had the best decorations to attract patrons.

Friends and rivals called back and forth across the open area of the ground. Amy paused for a moment and drew in a deep breath through her nose. She smelled roasting chestnuts, cotton candy, popcorn, and other wonderful smells that made her stomach growl. It reminded her that she had not had time to eat supper.

She spotted her friend Raye Hino, and was about to call out to the shrine maiden, but then thought better of it. Raye looked more than a little frazzled dealing with some vendors.

Instead of interfering, the blue-haired teen made her way inconspicuously to the building containing the temple's private living quarters. Once inside, she could hear Serena and Mina laughing over something. Following the sounds of the two giggling blondes, Amy quickly found the pair in Raye's room.

"Hey Ames!" Serena greeted. Serena was dressed in cream-colored slacks and a pink blouse. Her long golden hair was held up with white heart-shaped ribbons.

"Hi-ee!" Mina sang. She was wearing a red dress with white frill. Amy tried hard not to giggle; Mina looked as if she was ready for a children's birthday party.

"So," the blond princess asked, "Where have you been hiding?"

The Scout of Mercury blinked. "What do you mean? I just arrived, Serena."

"Huh?!" Serena demanded. Mina looked mildly worried and inched away from her friend.

"I just got here." Her friend looked puzzled. "Yes, Serena, you got here before I did." 'It was bound to happen eventually by sheer chance.' "Please don't make an issue of it." 'There's still plenty of time before...' Amy frowned, tapped her bottom lip, and then asked, "I see... You believed that I was here already?"

"Raye..." Serena declared in a tightly controlled voice, "That fire breath told me that you were ALREADY here!"

"Come on now, girlfriend," Mina interjected in a conciliatory tone, "I bet she was just having a little fun. Give her a break."

"A little fun!" Serena thundered and then nodded, "She majorly razzed me about being late. I'm gonna go tell her that you just got here."

"I wouldn't recommend it," Amy cautioned, "When I was coming in, Raye appeared quite busy."

"Raye's the one that's been majorly chomping at the bit wanting to get things done. We're all set! Lita's here, those yummy looking cookies are here. Can't she stop worrying?" Before either teen could stop their meatball-headed friend, Serena left the room.

"Oh my... Seems I've inadvertently stirred the proverbial pot," Amy remarked as she dumped her stuff into a corner.

"Don't worry, Amy," Mina said, "Raye just wants everything to go off perfectly tonight. She's been pushing Serena's buttons over getting ready for days." The ribbon-wearing blonde considered for a moment. "Of course, Serena asked Raye if she wanted Serena to go home..."

"What did she say?"

"Raye changed the subject," Mina admitted.

Amy winced. 'Sometimes I wish they'd just grow up.' "So," she asked as she settled onto a cushion on the floor, "Where's Lita?"

"Her and Reenie are setting up our booth."

"Oh Reenie came too. Maybe that's what is aggravating Serena."

Mina shook her head. "I don't think so... Should we go try and save Raye from Serena?"

The teen considered. She looked over at her textbook and then shook her head. 'That can wait.' "Let's go see how Lita's doing."

- - - - -

Lita inspected the last of their booth's decorations with smug satisfaction. She then turned to her small helper and held back a giggle. Reenie was dressed (or more aptly draped) in Serena's shrine robes. Neither Serena nor Reenie had discovered that the child was wearing them.

Reenie carefully wrote out prices for the cookies with a large colored marker on a three-foot square sheet of white cardboard. "How's it coming, kiddo?" she asked her young assistant.

"Okay," the little girl replied and smiled up at Lita. She held up the product of her labor for the teenager's approval and smiled once again when the tall brunette presented her a thumbs-up sign. 'She sure looks different from this afternoon.' Lita was dressed in a rather cool looking black outfit.

Reenie glanced towards the price list and then frowned. "Y'know... We're selling these way too cheap."

"Why?"

"'Cause they're so **super** yummy!" The child's stomach growled in agreement.

Lita grinned and then rumpled the little girl's hair. "Thanks, Reenie. I always liked baking, but if we overprice them, we'd never sell anything and this money's going to the temple." 'That's why Raye is so stressed.' She covered her mouth as she yawned. "Sorry..." 'Maybe Serena and Amy can take the first shift so I can catch a snooze.' She glanced at her watch. 'About a half hour before things get going.' She gazed about one more time. Satisfied, she crouched down. "Hey... Wanted to ask you, how'd you con Serena into letting you wear jeans and a sweater?"

The teenager watched with interest as the youngster blushed for a moment. "You don't have to tell me, Reenie, if you don't wanna."

"Oh..." The little girl absently drew a bunny head in pink on the price list, then admitted, "I have my PJs on underneath. Please don't tell the others... I sorta said I might catch cold so..."

"Did she find out you were gone?"

"Auntie Ellen and Uncle Ken caught on the way home." Lita winced. "Serena was pretty good, but Auntie was really mad." The seven year old blushed then and looked around. "I didn't think I'd get to come." 'Serena didn't have to be so nice. Maybe Lita was right.' "Auntie said I gots to be on my bestest behavior... or else!"

She frowned then as her friend laughed. Before Reenie could say anything, Amy's voice called out, "Hi, you two!"

"Hey Amy! Mina, did Serena find the '_goods_'?" Lita wondered with a grin.

"No, not yet," Mina answered.

"Hi Amy! Mina!" Reenie greeted. "See!" She held up the price list.

"Very good, Reenie," the blue-haired girl complimented and then glowered at Mina who giggled.

"Mina, where's Serena?" Reenie asked.

"Talking with Raye," Mina replied and then wondered, "So, are we all set?"

"Yep, Amy if you wanna cookie, I made us a batch. They're hidden in Raye's room." She winked.

The genius girl blinked. "Was that really necessary?"

"Oh yeah... Once Serena gets a hold of 'em, they'll be all gone in five seconds," Lita predicted with a grin.

"Yeah, she's such a pig," Reenie agreed and then clapped her hands over her mouth and looked wildly around. 'Sorry Serena.'

"Don't worry, kiddo. You're safe," Lita commented dryly, "Serena isn't here yet."

"Hope not. I promised her and Auntie I'd be good," Reenie squeaked. "When do you think things will really get going?"

"Oh, fairly soon, some booths are operating already," Amy observed. She then continued, "Well, I should change into my robes too."

"We got about half an hour. Let's go chill for a bit," Lita suggested with another yawn.

- - - - -

Raye Hino swept through the Cherry Hill Temple grounds inspecting the various stalls that were setup and making last-minute changes. Some booths were being run by the temple itself, such as the cookie stall and the booth where Raye would be selling charms. Others were being run by others who were renting space and/or donating some proceeds to the temple. That didn't stop Raye from worrying however -- she had to protect the Cherry Hill Temple's image after all.

Of course, a bigger concern was her grandfather... and Serena. One issue with Serena though seemed to be solved -- Reenie was acting more subdued. The raven-haired teen had wondered about the youngster's demure behavior but quickly shrugged it off. As long as they weren't arguing, Raye didn't care. When they did, Raye would just have to duct tape Serena into silence. 'At least,' Raye thought as she headed towards her own booth, 'Chad isn't following me around like a puppy dog.' The elder Hino was keeping his acolyte busy with jobs and helping to make sure everything was ready for the bell ringing ceremony.

"Raye!" Raye paused, turning towards the calling voice. "Hey Raye!" She found Serena coming towards her at a gallop.

"What is it, Serena?" the raven-haired girl demanded.

"Ames is here."

Raye sighed, glanced at her watch, and then nodded. "Good..." She looked serious for a moment. "You didn't scarf all the cookies yet, did you?"

Serena, who had come to a stop in front of Raye, put her hands on her hips, and demanded, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means, _Meatball Head,_ did you eat all the cookies that we're planning on selling to the guests? Our temple needs this money."

"No," the blonde huffed tartly, "Jeez, Raye, if you don't want me here, just say so!"

"Of course, I want you here, Serena," the priestess lied. "Now go tell the others that I'll be right there. I just need to check on Gramps and Chad." The teen watched her golden-haired friend scamper off before sighing softly.

"Trouble?" asked a male voice. Raye pivoted and came face to face with Darien.

"Just being Serena's friend is hard sometimes."

"I know what you mean, Raye," the young man commented, his eyes trailing after the retreating blonde.

"You're still in love with her, aren't you?" She snorted when he shook his head. "Well, don't be surprised when she grows out of loving you. She has a fragile heart." She cocked her head to the side. "Personally, I would've nailed your scrawny hide to the wall for what you did but Serena's just too good-hearted for that."

"Just like you're too good-hearted to tell her the truth?" Darien quipped. Raye whirled and marched away, her nose in the air. He chuckled softly to himself, "Some things never change."

- - - - -

Lita walked into the private quarter's kitchen and snapped sharply, "Serena, get your pigtails away from those cookies!" The meatball-headed blonde yelped and scuffled away from the inviting pile of cookie trays. "Honestly," the teen declared as she walked over to her other friends, "I told you that I'd make us a batch... actually REENIE AND I made this batch especially for you guys to share."

"But, what's the diff?" Serena protested looking between the neatly spaced cookies on the counter waiting on plastic wrap covered trays to be taken to the booth and the container of loose cookies in Lita's hands. "I mean we couldn't we just like exchange them?"

"The '_diff_', Meatball Head," Raye began tartly, "Is that if you eat any of the ones we're trying to sell, I'll break every one of your fingers..." Her eyes narrowed as she added, "One at a time... princess or not."

Serena pouted and whined, "Why are you being so mean?!"

"Raye's just joking," Reenie offered. 'I hope...' It wouldn't pay to get Serena ticked enough to stalk off back home. That would mean her grounding would start immediately.

"Here Raye..." the tallest of the girls said by way of a subject change, "Have a cookie and relax or you're gonna blow a gasket. How can you make everyone good luck charms and stuff while you have a vein pulsing on your forehead ready to explode?"

Raye grabbed one and nibbled it, trying to relax. "Sorry, Lita, it's just... I don't want anything to give the temple a bad image. I just hope Grandpa..." 'And Serena...' "Will behave."

"I thought Chad was with him," Mina remarked as Lita offered the container to Amy who carefully blocked it so Serena couldn't make a grab for it.

"He is," Raye complained, "But... Well... he's Chad."

"Yeah, you're hunka-hunka-burnin'-love," Serena stage-whispered, which caused the shrine maiden to blush brightly and the other girls to laugh.

"You better take a couple more, Ames," Lita recommended to her friend who had only taken one, "When Serena gets her hands on these, there won't be even crumbs left."

"Yeah, she's..." the pink-haired youngster began and then trailed off. "I mean she's not that bad... most of the time."

"What?" the blonde in question demanded as she trained her big blue eyes onto the seven year old.

"I just mean you're a bottomless pit sometimes," Reenie tried again, "Sorta like... What did '_Google Glasses_' call you... a '_black hole_'?" She pressed her lips together, hoping to prevent any further speech. Serena looked ready to erupt like a volcano.

"She does have a point," Mina pointed out as she copped her share of cookies. "Relax, girlfriend, I don't think I could eat as much as you do and still keep that thin."

Next, Lita held the container towards Reenie who shook her head. "What's wrong? You helped make them, have a go."

"I already snuck a couple when you weren't looking," Reenie stated before turning her attention back to Serena who was still fuming.

It was Raye who saved her. "Serena," the raven-haired teen announced out of left field, "I think you should date another guy."

"EH?!" the group asked in unison.

"First, Darien dumps Serena and ever since, he's been acting like a complete dweeb to her." Before anyone could comment, the fiery teen got a thoughtful look on her face and continued, "I wonder if... Nah!"

"What?!" Serena and Reenie demanded.

"Well... You don't think it's the enemy again."

"The Negaverse?" Reenie asked puzzled, "Why would they wanna have Darien dump me... er Serena?" She glanced nervously towards Serena but the blonde was paying attention to Raye. 'Close one.'

"I never thought of that..." Serena admitted thoughtfully. "Well, I don't think so. I mean he majorly doesn't wanna be around me. It doesn't seem like when Queen Beryl..." She shrugged and looked longingly at Lita who took the hint and handed the jar with the remaining cookies over to her ravenous friend. "What about you, Lita?"

"I had a few out of there before heading over. I didn't eat a lot of supper." The brunette yawned. "What say Amy and Serena take the first round, I wanna crash for a bit."

"Sure," Mina agreed, "Me and you can do second shift. Besides, I wanna wander about." 'And scope for guys.' "I'll come wake you."

"What about me?!" Reenie questioned.

"You're staying put in Raye's room, young lady," Serena mumbled around a mouthful of cookies. She swallowed. "Mom didn't say that you could run around the temple all by yourself." Her brow wrinkled as she regarded Reenie. 'Those robes look big on her...'

"But..." Reenie trailed off and then surprised everyone by squeaking, "Yes, ma'am."

Serena grabbed the remaining cookies and stood. "Well, Ames, if we're up first, shouldn't we get our robes on?" Amy nodded, grabbed a few more cookies from Serena -- a rather daring feat -- and stood up. "Reenie, you majorly need to give me my robe back."

"Huh?" the youngster asked looking down at herself.

"You wanted to help out so much that you snagged mine."

"No wonder it was so big," Reenie commented and then asked, "I mean can't I come help you?" She gave the teenager a pleading look.

Serena considered and then agreed. "Sure, come on kiddo, you can help me and Amy."

- - - - -

"All right, Chad," Grandfather Hino commented as his young apprentice slumped to the ground beside him, "It looks like we're finally ready." Hard panting was his only response. "My boy, you've been with us for some time and still you are out of shape. You have to stop mooning over Raye."

"I don't!"

The old priest laughed and patted the younger man on the back. "Don't think I don't see it. I might be a little long in the tooth but I see the signs."

"You do?"

"Of course, what's not to like about a very attractive figure? Then too, they say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder." He prodded the younger man to a standing position. "Go find my granddaughter and tell her that I said you were to help her."

"She won't like that, Grandpa," Chad pointed out, although he was already moving. The elder Hino just chuckled and waved the young man away. He knew she agreed that she wouldn't date until she was sixteen.

- - - - -

The festivities were well underway at the Cherry Hill Temple when Molly Baker came to the top of the stairs. She looked around and gave a low whistle. "Wow! Things sure are swinging here..." She started picking her way through the crowd of people wanting to see the different stalls. There were games and food, charms and fortunetellers. 'It looks like some wild bizarre,' the young teenager thought.

Molly briefly considered wandering around the booths on her own but then dismissed the idea. 'Serena would kill me!' The fourteen year old sighed and started hunting for her best friend. 'At least Melvin ain't around.' One could only take their class nerd for so long, even if Molly had a crush on him. 'Something I constantly question,' she mused as she squeezed herself between two women who could've passed for sumo wrestlers. 'Maybe they are...' She glanced over her shoulder in mild wonder.

"Hey!" the voice complained as the redhead walked into its owner.

Molly turned and felt herself blushing as she took in the hunky form of Darien Shields. "Sorry," she remarked, "What are ya doin' here?"

"Same thing you are."

"Oh so you're going out with Serena again?"

"No..."

Molly pushed passed him purposefully treading on his foot. "Well, _**I'm**_ here to see Serena," the redhead shot over her shoulder.

Darien watched the rapidly retreating form of Molly Baker with annoyance. His expression turned to surprise as he heard one of his friends comment, "You keep your face like that, and it'll stick." Darien turned and saw Andrew staying there, along with his little sister.

"Hey, you two."

"Hi Darien," Lizzy remarked, winked, and then slipped away from her brother.

"Girl trouble?" Andrew asked his friend.

"People keep thinking I'm going to date Serena or something and when I tell them I'm not, I get ridden roughshod over..." The young man before him gave a sympathetic smile. "Girls never really did make much sense, you know?"

"I work in an arcade," Andrew drawled. "I see all types of weirdness and nothing's as weird as a _kid sister_..." Any further commentary was cut off as a snowball smacked him in the face.

"I heard that!" Lizzy shouted at him.

- - - - -

"Miss, your kid sister is so cute!" the old woman gushed as she took her bag of cookies. Reenie tried hard not to grind her teeth. Instead, she plastered another smile onto her face and thought dark thoughts.

"Thanks. She's super nice," Serena remarked.

'Serena's being awful nice to me,' Reenie thought, 'Man... What is she up to now?'

"We hope you like the cookies." As the woman was leaving, Serena turned and whispered, "Jeez, would it kill you to say thank you to the lady? She's just saying that you're cute."

"Guess not..." the seven year old admitted. "It's just I'm not used to getting the kid sister bit when it comes to you."

"You could be Amy's kid sister," the blonde said a little disappointedly, "We could tell them that."

"I don't think that would be wise," Amy commented as she quickly sorted the money that the last customer had given her.

"Amy's right. That'd be majorly boring," the pink-haired girl remarked.

Before Serena could retort, a new customer appeared. Reenie took the order and both she and Amy watched as Serena made it up. Amy took the money and Serena thanked them. Just as it looked like they were about to continue their previous discussion, Molly appeared.

"Hiya gals, how's it going?"

"Excellent, business is quite brisk," Amy replied. "How are you this evening, Molly?"

"Okay, how about you guys?" she drawled.

"Great!" the meatball-headed blonde gushed happily, "Things are really swinging." She cocked her head. "Do I hear a band?"

Molly cocked her head as well. "I don't think so... Wanna go check it out?"

"Sorry, Mol, I can't," Serena declined. "I have to stay and help Ames."

"I can go!" Reenie offered.

"No way!" Serena vetoed.

"But Serena...!"

"Ree-nie..." the teenager growled.

"You're no fun," the pink-haired youngster complained, crossed her arms, and stuck her bottom lip out in a pout. She hoped Serena would lighten up as the evening progressed. Amy was silently praying that Serena would not get into a quarrel and was rather mystified when the heavens apparently answered her prayers.

"Okay, okay, squirt, I get the hint. Go get Mina and ask her if she'd come and help Amy. I'll take you around then to see the stuff with Molly and then you're being parked in Raye's room for the rest of the night." As the little girl ran off, grumbling under her breath the entire time, Serena turned back to her friends and found them both staring at her. "What?"

"Are you feeling okay, Serena?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You are exhibiting behavior that is not emblematic of your established norms."

"Huh?"

"She means you're actin' kinda weird," Molly translated.

"I'm trying very hard to be patient with her. She's just excited being around all this." 'I remember what it's like.'

- - - - -

Reenie came into the living room of the Cherry Hill Temple private quarters and was startled when Mina lifted her up and spun her about. "Guess what!"

"What?!" Reenie asked.

"I got a date!" The blonde giggled and let the youngster go, making Reenie stagger slightly as she regained her footing. "I was going by and I saw him and he saw me and... oh..." Mina dissolved into giggles. "Isn't that way super grand?"

"Um... Serena wants to know if you'll come help Amy."

Mina pouted, "Well, I guess I can meet _Mr. Right_ in a little bit." The little girl wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

"She 'n' Molly 'n' me are gonna tour the stalls."

"I just hope they don't wake Lita up. She's still sleeping." Mina patted Reenie on top of the head and left.

'Weird,' Reenie thought and carefully made her way to Raye's room. There she pulled the shrine robes off and then crept over to make sure that she hadn't disturbed Lita. She smiled to herself. Yes, Lita was likely going to have a good nap. Given the size of the lump on the bed, Lita was under it in the fetal position dead to the world. Softly, the child ran from the room, not wishing to be left behind.

End of Chapter 2

Coming next in **Chapter 3 - Venus: Champion of Youthful Love!**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	3. Chapter 3 Venus: Champion of Youthful Lo

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble****  
By Douglas Helm and "**_**Tuxedo**_**" Will Wolfshohl**

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 3 - Venus: Champion of Youthful Love!**

**M**ina Aino watched as her friend Amy shifted in her chair for what seemed like the thousandth time. "What's the matter, girlfriend?" she asked while continuing to keep a watchful eye out for any attractive looking guys strolling by the booth.

"Nothing..." Amy wiggled in the metal fold-up chair. "I just can't seem to get my robes to sit right. I know they're supposed to be _somewhat_ loose fitting." She shifted them a bit. "I get them into one spot, and they slid off of me. Perhaps, I grabbed Lita's by mistake." 'Ironic Reenie and I making the same error.'

"Y'know, Amy, I think Raye grabbed whatever sizes she had lying around and left them out for us," Mina commented while adjusting her own robes, "I'm having the same issue." She giggled. "It's like the Navy -- _nobody gets the right size uniform at first_. Lita's probably squeezed in one Serena's size and..." Her attention was caught by a group of young men who were making their way towards the booth. "Hi!" she greeted cheerfully, "How can we help you?"

The young man in the lead who looked about sixteen stopped, blinked, and asked, "Hey cutie, where's your big sister?"

"I don't have a big sister... Why?"

"Oh, sorry. My mistake. I thought I saw an older girl running around here that looks like you."

Mina smiled while Amy sighed internally. "That was probably me. Can I interest any of you guys in some cookies to benefit the temple?"

"Sure, I'll take a half dozen of those," he replied pointing to a tray of raspberry coconut cookies. Happily, the ribbon-wearing blonde started filling his order.

"Hey, my name's Mina and I'm almost ready for a break. Wanna stroll around together?"

"Mina..." Amy hissed but her friend ignored her.

"Uh... I guess." She was still a cutie even if she wasn't the high school girl that he had mistaken her for earlier. "Name's Dave," he replied while handing the money to the blonde's companion. "How long?"

She looked at her watch. "Maybe ten minutes?"

"Sure, I can wait that long." Mina gave him her sunniest smile. The rest of the guys took the hint and left.

- - - - -

While Mina was flirting with teenage boys, Molly, Serena, and Reenie were wandering around the grounds looking at the different booths. The seven year old was mentally grinding her teeth at the imposed requirement of holding Serena's hand. Why couldn't Serena act more like her friend instead of her mother?

"Cheer up, chipmunk," Serena commented to the little girl at one point.

The youngster gritted her teeth. 'I hate that nickname! And I can't even blame Serena for it...' She scowled. 'I'm gonna get Sammy back for calling me a chipmunk! At least, it's better than "_pink spore_".'

"What's the matter, Reenie?" Molly asked. The youngster's eyes flicked to Serena's hand and her ears went bright pink.

"You getting tired?" Serena asked and then noticed that her charge was regarding their clasped hands. "It's not that bad."

"Says you," the child grumbled but didn't say anymore.

Serena sighed. Molly looked to her friend and then blinked. "Y'know, Serena... you grew some."

"I did?" Serena asked disbelievingly. She stopped and looked down at her feet and then back up at Molly. She was surprised to discover that indeed, she was taller. "Boy... I guess I didn't really notice it but I'm a little bit taller than you now." 'Thank God, the _Puberty Fairy_ finally visited me!' She always hated being teased for being the smallest in their eight grade class, not to mention amongst the Sailor Scouts as well. 'Maybe I'll fill out soon.' Her mom told her more than once not to worry because she had been a "_late bloomer_" too. The teenager shifted slightly. 'Boy, I didn't notice how majorly tight this outfit is...' She frowned. 'I just had it on a few days ago...' She glanced at Reenie who was looking both bored and annoyed. 'Did Mom let Reenie do the laundry?' The blonde made a sour face. 'It wouldn't surprise me if she had...' She tugged on her blouse. 'I can't wear this thing out in public. That's way more Raye or Mina's style.' While Serena wasn't as conservative as Amy was when it came to clothing, most of Raye and Mina's attire left Serena somewhat uncomfortable, especially given her relative lack of curves.

"Well, it's not like we hang around much no more," Molly remarked offhandedly and then winced at the stricken look on her best friend's face. "I didn't mean it like that, Serena. It's just..."

The pigtailed teen grimaced and shrugged. "I know... I feel bad though, Mol." She smiled and the redhead relaxed. "I'm just majorly busy with stuff and when I do wanna drop by the store and see you, stuff just seems to crop up." She gave a meaningful look towards Reenie who was looking as if she'd just eaten a lemon.

Bending down, the teenager lifted Reenie, and shifted her to a hip, much to the seven year old's chagrin. 'Ugh... These clothes are getting tight. Perfect excuse for a mall trawl! New after school clothes!' The thought of a good trawl through the mall warmed the cockles of Serena's heart. She just loved spending money; a Scrooge she was not.

"I know how to walk," the pink-haired girl announced.

"You don't wanna hold my hand..."

"Jeez, Serena, when did you get all parental?" Reenie questioned but then said with annoyance, "Fine, I'll hold your hand..." Then continued under her breath, "So you won't get lost."

The teen allowed her young cousin down and took her hand after rumpling the girl's pink hair. "Come on, Mol. Let's go buy this young lady here some candy."

'And you...' the redhead silently added but smiled. Serena seemed to have gained some maturity with her height.

Sometime later, as they pulled along side one booth, Serena paused in her exchange of gossip with her friend when someone called out to her.

"Serena!"

"Oh... Hi Carrie!" the pigtailed blonde greeted. The five year old was standing with a woman who Serena took to be her mother. "How are you?"

"Okay," Carrie replied. "Is Mina here too?"

"Manners, Carrie," her mother inquired, "Who's this young woman?" She regarded Serena.

"Oh, this is Serena, Mommy," the little girl answered, "So is Mina here 'cause I haven't seen her in a WHOLE week?!"

"I'm Serena Tsukino, a friend of Mina's, ma'am," Serena explained politely, shaking Carrie's mother's hand, "And this is Molly Baker. She's in my class... And of course, Reenie."

"Hello Reenie," Carrie's mother said, "Do you know Mina too?"

"Hello," Reenie replied, trying to be polite, "I know Mina too..." The younger girl was looking put out at having her question ignored.

"My name's Patricia." She shook Serena's hand. "You have such a cute little girl..." Molly snickered at the implication.

"Yes, she is very cute... 'though she can be a real handful sometimes."

'She's so young...' "I know exactly what you mean, Serena," Patricia agreed and then added to said cute girl, much to her bewilderment, "Are you in Carrie's class?"

Before the pink-haired youngster could say anything, Carrie burst in, "Do ya know where Mina is?!"

"Yep, she's selling cookies," Serena responded with a grin.

"Can we go see her, Mommy? Pleeeease!" Carrie squealed to her mother.

The mother rolled her eyes. "I guess that we should go see Mina before we head home or else I'll never hear the end of it. Happy New Year."

"It was nice meeting you, ma'am," the blonde commented. Molly agreed. On the other hand, Reenie was rather dubious about the honor but did manage a polite sounding goodbye before the hyperactive child dragged her mother into the thickening crowd.

"I'd watch it, Serena," Molly commented softly, "Or you'll start to get a reputation."

"For what, Mols?"

The redhead rolled her eyes and asked, "Honestly, are ya that naive?"

"'Bout what?" Serena asked and then glanced at Reenie.

The pink-haired girl wasn't about to admit that she didn't have any idea what Molly was referring to either, so remarked, "Don't look at me. I'm only seven and I get it."

Molly snickered again then grinned when Serena turned back to her with a mild look of exasperation on her face. "You really didn't catch on?" When her friend gave her an annoyed look, the redhead shook her head slightly, put a hand on her shoulder, and explained, "Serena, Carrie's Mom thought that Reenie was _your_ daughter!"

"WHAT?!?!" both Tsukinos screeched.

"I bet you thinks you're my teacher or something..." Molly gave the blonde a smirk. "Imagine what Ms. H will say if she hears that!"

- - - - -

Lita Kino sat up, yawned, and rubbed her eyes. She squinted around the room but didn't see much due to the gloom. 'Nice of the girls to let me nap in peace.' Shifting about to a sitting position, she frowned. 'Maybe I should've eaten something more. I feel funny.' She normally had more than just cookies for supper. Yawning again, she stood up or tried to anyway.

With a loud THUD, she hit the floor. "Owie! Okay, who's the joker who jacked up the bed?" Lita questioned the darkened room. Grateful her friends hadn't been around to see her fall, she pushed herself up. Man, I should've slept longer but I gotta pee...' Straightening her clothes, the brunette stumbled towards the door. 'Whoa!' She paused and frowned even more. 'What the... ' Her clothing felt completely wrong. Groping for the wall, she hunted around for the bedroom light and flicked it on. "Gah!" the brunette squawked as light painfully shone into her eyes when the overhead light came to life.

"Well... at least I'm not blind," Lita remarked to herself as she pried her eyes open. 'Although things look off...' She considered the problem for several seconds and then glanced down at her clothing. She was walking on the cuffs. That's when things began to really sink in. "Oh crap!" Lita shouted, "What happened to my boob... _talents_?!" They weren't there anymore. She yanked back her shirt and glanced inside. 'It looks like somebody deflated them!'

She quickly looked the rest of herself over. Her frame was smaller now, tomboyish. It appeared she had lost several inches of height judging by the relative size of the furniture. Her arms and legs were shorter and less defined. She was still fit, although not nearly the degree that she had been earlier. Feeling her head, her hair was relatively the same, at least as far as she could tell without a mirror. Any further exploration was cut short, however when Lita realized that she needed to urgently use the toilet.

- - - - -

Raye Hino hurried into the private living quarters. Her grandfather had taken over her fortunes booth for a few minutes so she could freshen herself up and grab a drink of juice. 'Things are going well,' Raye thought delightedly, 'Serena is behaving herself. We got a good crowd this year and everything's selling!' The young shrine maiden knew, however, that things couldn't remain this good. 'I wonder when the Negaverse is going to attack?' she mulled with a grim smile. She was getting the feeling that something was amiss. Nevertheless, she saw no signs of a problem. 'Things can't remain this calm, can they? Am I just getting paranoid?'

She was just passing the bathroom when the door opened. The priestess paused, trying to figure out who the girl inside her bathroom was. After the initial surprise, familiar features tugged at her mind. "L-Lita?"

"Yep! It's me, Raye," a rather bouncy preteen replied.

"Oh my God! What happened, Lita?" Raye screeched.

"I don't know!" Lita replied in a singsong voice, "I did lose some frontage, not a bad thing given my smaller body." She giggled. "I wonder if Serena has an extra bra I could borrow?" Although even the petite Serena likely had her beat in that department now.

"But... but..." Raye sputtered. Her friend seemed to be taking this pretty well.

"It could be worse, Raye."

"Worse? What could be worse? You're a little girl," the priestess pointed out but before her friend could answer (or dispute she wasn't "_little_"), she continued, "We need to get the others, pronto. I knew the Negaverse would attack!"

"The Negaverse?" the preteen asked, one eyebrow raised. It made sense. It's not as if normal people suddenly get younger. "Aren't they more ostentatious about these things?"

"Maybe... But I'm going to get the others. Lita, you stay here. We can't have Grandpa and Chad seeing you like that!" Before the brunette could respond, the shrine maiden ran down the hallway.

- - - - -

"Raye," Amy demanded yet again as her raven-haired friend pulled her away from the booth like some errant child, leaving Mina and a complete stranger alone to tend to it. The teenager Mina had been flirting with had been dragooned into helping out by Raye; the fiery priestess wasn't somebody that he wanted to trifle with.

"No time," Raye protested, tugging on Amy's robes nearly pulling them completely off.

"Honestly, Raye, I'm not some infant you can cart around!" Amy snapped. The raven-haired teen was so startled by the uncharacteristic outburst that she stopped. "Thank you," Amy said, retrieving the robes and trying to settle them as best she could, "Now what is it?" When her friend only glanced around, she demanded, "What is the problem?" There was no sign of a Negaverse attack.

"Not here. Come on..." Raye moved off down the hall again.

"What about Mina?"

"They can handle it, Amy," the Scout of Mars snapped. Her pace increased. "I have something more important for you to do."

'We're doomed,' Amy thought as she tried to keep up with her imposing friend. 'Things are just not going well. I missed dinner, I put on Lita's robes, Raye gives me a bruise on my arm, my mother's coming by later, and the bloody chair's sinking into the ground... And now, Raye has left a guaranteed moneymaking source in the hands of Mina and some boy she just met.' Amy shook her head. 'All we need now is for Queen Beryl to show up and give manicures.' She internally grimaced. 'My blood sugar must be low...' When she saw Raye looking impatiently at her, she replied with just a hint of testiness, "I can't move around fast in floppy clothing."

"This is serious!" her friend snapped.

Amy tried to control her temper. 'Raye's so serious.' A realization struck her then, 'Maybe Serena's actually right for a change.' Such an improbable thought, especially coming after the idea of Queen Beryl giving manicures, was more than a little disconcerting, 'I wonder if I'm coming down with something?'

Her patience was rewarded when she was presented to a girl who appeared antsy and could pass for her friend Lita's little sister (if she had one).

"Can I go now?" the girl demanded.

"No, Lita, not until this comedian scans you!" Raye huffed.

"Lita?!" Amy got herself under control, regarded her smaller friend, and nearly lost it again, even if the situation wasn't funny. It just felt good to laugh. "Sorry Lita. You look..." She cleared her throat. "So what's the problem?" she asked, trying hard to sound studious.

"Nothing!" Lita commented, "I shrunk some, lost some weight off of my front... which come to think about it is not at all bad. I have loads of energy too. I'm feeling much better now!"

"She's looks like a kid," Raye interjected, scowling, "It has to be the Negaverse!"

"Oh please, they ain't this subtle. The only one of them that we've met with half a brain was Nephrite and he's amongst his stars now," the brunette commented. Although if it wasn't the Negaverse, who could it be?

"When did this happen?"

"Must've happened while I was sleeping. I woke up like this. It didn't hurt... At least I don't remember it hurting." 'I won't mention the fall.'

"Use your visor," the fiery priestess demanded.

"Raye, I can't without being Sailor Mercury. What would your grandfather say if he found a Sailor Scout in here?"

"Fresh meat," Lita supplied dryly. Much to Raye's annoyance, both her friends started to snicker. "Go ahead, Amy."

Amy pulled out her transformation pen. "MERCURY STAR POWER!" And in a moment, Sailor Mercury stood before them. Immediately, she activated her VR visor and began scanning her friend. "Can you transform?" the blue-haired Scout asked. 'I wish I could stay in my Sailor Scout uniform, it fits better than those robes.'

"Let's find out." With that, the former teen took her transformation pen out of her subspace pocket and lifted it over her head. "JUPITER STAR POWER!" Moments later, Sailor Jupiter stood before them. At least, a younger version of her did. "Not a problem," Jupiter replied with a grin. "My uniform even fits." She modeled it for a few moments then she reversed the transformation and back to her oversized civilian clothing.

"We should get the others in here and warn them."

"I don't know if that's necessary," Mercury mused. "I don't detect anything out of the ordinary, nothing harmful. No Negaverse signatures as when the Clock Store youma attacked us. Her power levels are consistent with my last scan of Sailor Jupiter. She just... regressed. Her physical age is 10.37 years."

"But..."

"Raye," Lita piped in more seriously, "I'm fine. This is a big night for the temple. We can quietly warn Serena and Mina to be on the lookout but unless this is some new enemy we don't know about... why spoil tonight?" The raven-haired teen looked stubborn and about to argue. "I know you want things to be safe, and with five Sailor Scouts roaming about, it will be. Besides, we don't want to start a panic for no reason."

Raye grimaced. 'She's right. We do need the money...' "We should do a circuit and make sure that Reenie is okay too."

"She's with Serena," the former teen replied, "Isn't she?"

"Probably, Lita, but then the kid has a habit of taking off when she's mad at Serena." 'Which is usually.'

"Come on, Lita," Amy suggested, "You can help me man the booth."

"Raye?" the brunette asked.

"Oh all right. If we don't find anything," Raye conceded. "I need to go back to the charms booth anyway. Just don't let Gramps see you..." She sighed, "And when you see Serena let her know, okay?"

"You bet!" Lita agreed with a grin, "Come on, Amy, I need to burn off some of this energy! But first, let's go find some clothes that'll fit me a little better than these." Raye watched both girls scamper from the room, shook her head, and sighed again.

- - - - -

"Do you suppose Serena brought an extra set of Reenie's clothes?" Lita asked as she and Amy entered Raye's bedroom.

"I would think so," the blue-haired girl replied. She was about to comment further when her cell phone rang. It took longer than usual to find it. "Hello?"

"Amy?" came her mother's voice.

"Hi Mom, what's up?"

"This connection must be funny, you sound off. Anyway, sweetie I think I'll be late. The hospital called and..."

"No worries, give me a call when you can."

"Sure," her mother agreed.

As Amy was saying goodbye, Lita was trying on a T-shirt, which she had found. "Uh, a little tight... I'll take that over loose and sloppy any day."

"I know," the teenager replied while hitching the robes up, "I hope I get a break soon. I'm starving." Amy wiggled and tightened the belt. "Let's hurry before Raye comes storming back in here."

- - - - -

"Mina!"

The ribbon-wearing blonde looked around and saw Raye gesturing to her while Amy and a person that looked somewhat like Lita came into view; both of them were grinning.

"Raye, can I go now?" Mina pleaded as she walked over to her obviously agitated friend. She smiled back at her new acquaintance over her shoulder.

"No," the raven-haired girl replied softly when Mina drew closer, "I need you to transform. Take a subtle look around as Sailor Venus. I'm gonna do the same. If things are quiet, then I'll go back to my charms booth and you can..." She cleared her throat. "Do what you need to."

Mina looked mildly concerned. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," calmly replied the Lita-looking kid along with Amy.

"Who's the kid?"

"It's Lita. She has become younger," Amy stated. "She's physically fine."

"Raye thinks it's the Negaverse, Mina," Lita interjected in a stage whisper. Raye scowled. "Just check Reenie out too."

"Why not call Serena?"

"She's likely knee deep in people," Amy pointed out. The crowd had definitely increased as the big event was drawing closer.

"And if I do this, then I can go?" Raye nodded. "Good." She didn't plan on doing any babysitting. She turned to Dave. "Hey Dave, I need to take care of something, I'll be right back." Dave only looked puzzled as Amy and a kid moved into the booth beside him.

"What's going on?" He hadn't come here to hang out with children.

"Nothing," Lita chirped.

Some minutes later, Mina reappeared. She was looking upbeat. "Nothing," she announced to the others, "Raye says she's set too."

"Nothing what?"

"Oh, _little_ Lita here wanted me to check out something out for her," Mina fibbed then giggled. "So Dave..." She wasn't able to finish or put on her robes because at that point, a large group of customers moved up to the booth and they were all busy.

- - - - -

"Hi Mina!" Carrie called out as she and her mother came up to the cookie booth. She tried squeezing between two people who were leaving but her mother wouldn't let her.

"Hey Carrie!" Mina declared and smiled, "Want some cookies?"

"Yeah!" the youngster exclaimed. Her mother grinned and motioned for her daughter to make a selection. As the five year old was trying to decide what type of cookie to have, she asked, "Mina, is that your boyfriend?" The beribboned blonde only grinned while blushing.

Carrie's mother only shook her head and then looked more closely at child's mentor. 'That dress... Mina looks younger.' She frowned. 'Maybe Carrie was wrong about her being fourteen.' Not that it bothered the thirty-something woman. Mina was a wonderful friend to her daughter and having her be younger just meant she was closer to Carrie's age.

"No, little girl... I'm just helping her sell cookies," he commented. Mina pouted. 'How old is this kid?' He asked Mina, "Your sister?"

"No..." Mina responded.

"I want that one please," the kindergartener requested poking a finger at a chocolate chip cookie.

"Okay, Carrie, I'll get that for you." While Mina was wrapping up the cookies, she could hear familiar voices approaching.

"Oh hi Serena!" Carrie called, "I found her."

"Hi Carrie," Serena replied and then turned back to Reenie who was looking less than happy.

"Uh oh," Lita muttered, seeing the look on Reenie's face. She rolled her shoulders. 'I think I'm stretching these clothes. I hope Reenie doesn't mind.'

"Here ya go," Mina announced, handing the cookies to her little friend. She turned just in time to see the guy who was sitting's beside her lock his eyes onto Serena.

"Friend of yours?" he asked softly, not even taking his eyes off of the pigtailed goddess before him. Where had she been all his life? He hadn't seen her at his school. Was she here from out of town?

"Yeah," she replied, looking unhappy.

"Why can't I go with Darien?!" Reenie demanded.

Surprisingly, the meatball-headed blonde didn't explode. Instead, she bent down, whispered softly into Reenie's ear, and then gave the youngster a gentle shove towards the living quarters.

The seven year old took several steps, stopped, and turned. Yanking down one eyelid, she blew a loud raspberry before feeling.

Carrie stood gaping at the older girl. Mina cocked an eyebrow. "What was that about?"

"Just an argument, guys," Serena answered smoothly, "How are sales going?"

"Great," Mina replied, "Can you take over now, Serena? I owe Dave here a walk." She batted her eyelashes at the young man who didn't even notice.

"Yeah, you can help us!" a familiar girl squeaked with a large grin.

"Lita?"

"Who else would it be?" Lita asked. Serena looked nonplussed. Carrie's mother glanced between the blonde and then around the booth area. 'Gracious... Is she minding all of them?' As the young woman looked up, she gave her a sympathetic look. 'Carrie can be quite a handful but to keep an eye on all of them? In this madhouse?' She shuddered internally at the mere thought.

"Sure," Serena shrugged. "Sorry Mol. Duty calls." 'And I want to know what's happening with Lita.'

"No problem. I really should go see if I can find Melvin... See ya later, Serena." Molly turned and walked away, thinking, 'She doesn't look like Lita...' But then again she barely knew Lita.

"Thanks for the cookies," Carrie said, waved, and left with her mother.

"Can you please hold the fort a little while longer, Mina? I need to get my robes..." Serena paused at the pounding of feet.

As the blonde walked away, Lita looked from her new perspective at her petite friend. 'Wow, Serena looks so tall.'

- - - - -

Reenie looked up as the door to Raye's bedroom opened and froze as she saw that it was Serena. She watched as her cousin came into the room and closed the door. In near silence, Serena found and then put on other robes. The pink-haired younger held her breath the entire time hoping that Serena wasn't too sore with her.

When the young woman was finished, she stood and looked to where the little girl was standing. "You can take those clothes off now, young lady. Your PJs will be fine for in here."

"What?" Reenie asked, eyes growing wide.

"I said," the meatball-headed blonde reiterated in a very neutral tone, "Your PJs are fine for now. You're not going back out."

"But..."

"Reenie, you've been sulking all evening. I think you need a timeout and think about if you really deserve to be here or not." Reenie's face started to turn red.

"THAT AIN'T FAIR!"

"You can always go home," Serena replied quietly. Her little cousin crossed her arms and jutted her bottom lip out in a pout. "If you're going to sulk, you can go straight to bed."

"YOU'RE A STUPID MEATBALL HEAD!"

"Pardon me, young lady?" the older girl asked in a stern tone.

"**YOU'RE A STUPID MEANIE MEATBALL HEAD!**" the youngster shouted, "**You won't let me have any fun!** Just 'cause you wanna be an ol' stick-in-the-mud..." Why hadn't things gone as she planned?

Serena allowed Reenie to rant herself into silence. "Are you done?" she asked, eyes boring into her cousin who was looking smaller than normal. After several seconds of silence, Reenie gave a jerky sort of nod. "Fine, you plunk yourself into a corner and think about why I shouldn't call Mom to come get you." The seven year old gulped. "And if I hear you EVER call me '_Meatball Head_' again, I'll blister your backside!" Reenie winced. "Clear?"

"Yes..." was the sulky reply.

"Corner, now," Serena commanded and pointed. She watched as the pink-haired girl went sulkily to stand in the corner. Again, she started for the door and then stopped. 'These clothes are majorly tight... Maybe I can borrow some of Raye's. Just a sweater or something...' Turning, she headed for her friend's closet only glancing once at her despondent little cousin.

End of Chapter 3

Coming next in** Chapter 4 - A Gaggle of Girls**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	4. Chapter 4 A Gaggle of Girls

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 4 - A Gaggle of Girls**

"**I**'m back!" Serena declared.

"Where are your robes?" Amy questioned. She quickly ducked out of the way, as Lita passed an order of cookies with a little more vigor than necessary.

"Gah! I forgot. My top was getting majorly tight so I changed and then..." She looked mildly pained. "Should I go back?"

"No, that's okay, Serena. We're getting busy and I don't think it'll really matters," Lita remarked.

"Good, I'm finally free," Mina exclaimed. She turned to say that she was finally ready to take a romantic walk with Dave but instead, she found the place beside her vacant. Looking around, she quickly spotted her potential date standing in front of Serena.

"I don't suppose... I mean..." He bowed flamboyantly. "Fair goddess, would you be interested in taking a walk with me? You can let the kids handle the booth." She giggled then nodded. He took her hand and led her away.

"Hey!"

"Hay is for horses," little Lita jibed, plunking herself beside the ribbon-wearing blonde. "You're right, Ames. This chair is way low."

"That's 'cause you're smaller," Mina shot back. She then turned back to try and save her date. Regrettably for her, she saw Serena and the boy that she was interested in walking away. "Hey! Wait for me!" Mina squawked and left the booth at a run.

"What is up with her, Lita?"

"Who knows?" Lita replied shrugging her shoulders. "Boy, those cookies look yummy..."

"I know," her friend agreed mournfully as her stomach growled, "And I'm hungry too." She then shot Serena a sour look. "And where does she think she's going?"

"Oh let her be, Amy," Lita quipped, "We can handle this. We're mature young women after all!"

- - - - -

Reenie sat the corner in Raye's room looking worriedly at the door and chewing her bottom lip. 'Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!' she chanted to herself, 'Why are you so stupid?!' Everything had been going fine until Serena had passed by Darien. He had called out to her but she chose to ignore him. That had placed the pink-haired youngster on the defensive. She had wanted to go say hi but Serena had pointedly refused to let her. That had started things rolling downhill.

'Stupid!' The seven year old couldn't decide if she was thinking of herself or Serena. 'She's all-serious now... Why though?' It made no sense. 'If anything, shouldn't she... Is she trying to brownnose Aunt Ellen?'

The thought of her aunt made Reenie's tummy clench. 'Oh jeez, if Serena sends me home...' She grimaced. "Maybe I should go apologize..." She got up, walked to the door, and then paused. After a moment, she sighed, walked back to the corner, and sat down. 'Man, if I leave, she'll go completely ballistic!'

- - - - -

A voice asked, "Where's your parents? It's kinda late for you kids to be out by yourselves."

"We're fourteen, buster!" came a higher, if squeaky, sounding voice. Amy glanced over at her companion; Lita looked annoyed.

"Oh yeah? You look about nine to me, _little girl_," he declared sarcastically. Before Amy could step in to prevent an argument, a new voice distracted her.

"I wanna buy a cookie," a blond-haired girl about eleven years old interjected. She squinted at Amy. "Do you go to my school?"

"No, I go to Crossroads," Amy replied. "What kind of cookie would you like, young lady?"

"I don't know..." the girl replied, having forgotten her selection. "Don'tcha got lemon?"

"No, just what's on the trays," Amy replied.

"No lemon. What type of cookie booth are you?" 'And there's no way she goes to Crossroads.' As the girl who huffed and flounced away, reminding Amy of her friend Mina in some ways, she suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. At least, Lita had gone back to her cheerful self. The blue-haired girl tugged on her robes. "Lita... I'm going to kill Mina! She should be here to help!"

"What about Serena?" the brunette asked.

"I haven't quite decided..."

- - - - -

"Um, does she follow you around like this all the time, Serena?" Dave asked as he glanced over his shoulder at Mina who was trailing them about thirty feet behind like some lost puppy.

Serena glanced over her shoulder and stopped. "Jeez, Mina, what are you doing?"

"Trying to keep you from stealing MY boyfriend!"

"He's a little old for you, don't you think?" Serena asked. In that frilly red dress, her friend looked like an elementary school kid.

"What are you talking about?" was the _Goddess of Love's_ reply. "We're both the same age."

"Why don't you go help Amy. She's majorly swamped." 'Jeez! Why doesn't she take the hint?' Since her breakup with Darien, Serena often felt like a fifth wheel, especially around her flirtatious friend.

"What about you?" Mina countered. "Shouldn't you come help out too?!"

"I will, Mina. I just... I just haven't seen all the booths," Serena replied smoothly. "Come on, Dave." And with that, she left Mina standing in the swirling mass of people, a scowl firmly planted on her face.

Dave spent the next few minutes trying to devise a line to get Serena's phone number or email when he heard a male voice, and it didn't sound friendly. "Just what do you think you're doing?!" Dave turned and his eyes widened as he saw a man at least twenty coming towards them, murder clearly showing in his eyes.

"Darien," Serena began in an acrid voice, "I was majorly enjoying myself... with this very nice boy." Darien frowned at the young man who tried hard not to look as if he wanted to crawl under a rock.

'I doubt I could take him...' Dave worried, 'Man... Who is this creep?'

"And why are you with HIM?"

"I'm dating Dave here if it's any of YOUR business, buster," Serena answered smoothly, which made her companion's heart soar. It abruptly fell from the heavenly heights as man's frown deepened.

"But he's out of your age range," Darien warned tightly.

Dave blinked and gave Serena a hard look. 'Oh no... I have got to get glasses or something. She's his age!' He rubbed his eyes and sighed dejectedly. "No wonder I didn't see you at my school..." 'She must go to his college.' She didn't hear him. He gazed at her wistfully.

"You don't have any say in whom I see, Darien."

"You can't date him," Darien stated again.

"Why... not?!" the meatball-headed blonde demanded, hands on her hips.

"Because you're _my_ girlfriend." The knots of people around the trio stopped what they were doing at the sound of a solid slap landing.

"Maybe," Serena hissed in a deadly voice, "That'll jog your brain! **WE SPLIT UP!**" Breathing hard, she settled herself slightly and turned to Dave. "Thanks for showing me around, Dave. I should really go though. I need to smooth things over with Mina and I need to talk to my cousin." She gave her ex-boyfriend one more hard look, and then marched with as much dignity as she could.

"Um..." Dave began sheepishly, eyeing Darien, "You broke up with her?"

"Yeah," Darien confessed. He turned and walked away muttering, "Stupidest thing that I've ever done. But now, she'll be safe."

- - - - -

After permitting herself to pout for a while, Mina pulled herself together and made her way back to the booth. She fully intended to be her normal bright and cheerful self. After all, it was just one guy and there were plenty of other fish in the sea. She even considered that she could be nice to Serena, given enough time, but was a little disappointed when her princess friend failed to be at the expected spot.

Instead, the beribboned blonde found a crowd, and two girls desperately in need of another set of hands. She pushed her boy troubles aside for the moment and entered the booth trying not to get in the way of Amy who seemed to be fighting with her clothing while trying to package a large order of cookies at the same time. The blue-haired girl was looking different somehow but Mina put it down to the ill-fitting robes.

Lita, on the other hand, seemed to be taking her current regressed condition in stride; she was being cheerful to everybody. "Hi Mina! Get your hands busy. Our booth..." 'And my cookies...' "...is a hit."

"Sorry, I took so long, guys," the Sailor Scout of Venus replied while moving to take one elderly woman's order. "I, as second in command, will lead you into the fray!" Mina struck a dramatic pose. "_Let not the cookie crumble but turn into a lining of silver._"

Lita, Amy, and the booths patrons stared at Mina for a moment but then Lita just rolled her eyes and muttered, "Whatever."

"At least you're here," Amy replied, sounding off. "I need to take a break and do something about these robes." She tugged at her clothing again. "Now if Serena would show up..." 'I'm glad I didn't have a lot to drink or my molars would be floating.'

"Hey guys, where'd my robes go? I set them here when I left..." Mina started hunting for her robes only managing to impede her companions in their work.

"Don't worry about that now, Mina. Just help," Amy commanded.

"Okay," Mina agreed, straightened, and brushed her dress smooth.

Lita frowned. "You should've worn something different, Miss Second-in-Command... That dress makes you look like a kindergartner." The Sailor Scout of Venus stuck her tongue but then giggled.

"At least, I'm not the same size as one," Mina shot back while giving her formerly tall friend a pointed look, then patting her gently on the head. Lita giggled. "And besides," Mina tossed her hair back with a flourish, "My radiance has grown with each passing day until I outshine my patron goddess Venus herself."

"Oh brother..." Amy mumbled.

- - - - -

Reenie sat quietly in the corner pondering what she was going to do. It appeared more and more as if she'd be sent home, especially considering that she couldn't think of a single reason why she should get to stay, at least that her cousin was likely to believe. She had planned things to turn out far differently.

Her stomach tightened as she heard the door open and glanced cautiously over her shoulder. The youngster felt her stomach relax as she recognized Amy. The blue-haired girl came into the room muttering under her breath and tugging at her robes.

"I'm going to kill these things!" Amy uncharacteristically snarled as she yanked the robes off, "My chair's sinking, I'm being swallowed by a set of Shinto robes, and I think that I'm coming down with a cold. On top of that, the rest of the help isn't around!"

Reenie watched Amy surreptitiously, not sure if she should tell the normally shy girl that she was here or not. 'She looks...' The seven year old narrowed her eyes and looked again. 'Is she gettin' littler?' The more the little girl regarded the genius girl, the more she was convinced that something was not quite right about her.

The little girl's musings were cut short when Amy muttered something that made the child's ears go pink. "I don't believe this. Even my normal clothes are loose. What's going on?" Reenie fidgeted nervously in the corner as Amy started rooting in her overnight bag. The ringing of her cell phone interrupted Amy's searching. She growled as she had to dig in her pocket for it. "Hello?"

"Amy?" Amy's mother asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, of course, Mother," Amy said, trying to sound chipper.

"Sweetie, I don't know when I'll be able to make it over..." Her mother sounded regretful.

"That's okay," the blue-haired teen replied, "We're up to our eyeballs in people and it'll likely get worse as we get closer to midnight. Why don't you just go straight home when you're done and I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course," Amy replied, trying to make herself sound cheery.

"Amy, maybe you should come home. You sound like you are congested."

"I'm okay. Really, Mother, it's just a bad connection."

"Well then, I'll see you tomorrow, dear. Goodnight."

"'Night, Mother, and happy New Year," Amy responded and then hung her phone up. "Something's not right..." Tossing the cell phone on the bed, the Sailor Scout drew forth her transformation pen. "MERCURY STAR POWER!" she called and in a flash of brilliant magical light, she was transformed into Sailor Mercury. Materializing her VR visor over her eyes and pulling her minicomputer out of its subspace pocket, she started scanning herself.

"Interesting... I'm not detecting any diseases. No signs of flu or colds. Good, I wouldn't want to infect the others." She frowned. "That's odd... My mass has decreased by 15.65 percent. That's well outside the standard deviation for..."

"I thought you looked smaller," interjected a voice. Mercury yelped and whirled around to find Reenie staring intently at her. "Sorry, Amy," the little girl apologized, her face reddening as she flushed, "Didn't mean to scare ya."

"That's all right, Reenie," Sailor Mercury assured her. "I didn't see you there. When did you enter the room?"

Reenie's face turned a deeper red as she blushed and admitted, "I've been in here since you came in. Serena... uh... put me in the corner." She was grateful the older girl didn't inquire further. "So what's the problem?"

"I seem to be losing mass..." Mercury got a thoughtful look on her face. "I wonder if this is the same condition..." she trailed off, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"So you aren't the same size and your stuff doesn't fit?" Reenie guessed, apparently to get Amy's train of thought back on the current situation rather than the cause.

"That's correct," Mercury agreed, "And I suspect the other clothes I've brought will not fit me either."

"Luna Ball can help," Reenie replied with a grin. "Do you want me to make you some clothes, Amy?"

Mercury looked startled for a moment. "It can do that?"

"It can do anything!" Reenie declared and then amended in a softer tone, "Well almost..." And then silently to herself, she added, 'It can't get me out of trouble... Traitor.'

"Well, let me change back," Mercury said and without further hesitation, she transformed back into her loose clothing.

The youngster for her part gave the door a nervous look and then went over to retrieve Luna Ball from its location on the bed. Bouncing it, she gave it one hard smack to send the cathead-shaped sphere into the air and called out, "LUNA BALL KITTY MAGIC!"

In a puff of pink smoke, clothing started to gather on the floor. A pair of blue socks, a deep green sweater, white shirt, bluejeans and a yellow hairband, along with some undergarments of appropriate size and color. Amy was interested in the garments, after inspecting them, quickly removed her ill-fitting clothing, and changed into the magically produced garb.

"Well?" Reenie asked a hopeful expression on her face.

"They fit!" Amy declared, beaming with happiness, "It's so nice to have something that fits tonight!" She went over and gave Reenie a hug. "Why don't you come help us?"

"I can't," Reenie informed her, "Serena gave me a timeout." 'And I can't push her any farther.'

"Oh... Sorry, kiddo, this is great. You really helped me." Amy gave the younger girl a serious look. "How about I go talk with Serena for you?"

"No," Reenie replied and then wrinkled her nose, "I have to." That is what a big girl would do. She sighed as Amy patted her on the head in a sympathetic fashion, thanked her once more, and left the room, leaving behind her oversized clothing and Shinto robes. 'Wow, Amy looks like she could go to my school.'

A handful of heartbeats later, the door reopened and Serena came into the room. Reenie felt her stomach sink to somewhere about her knees. The little girl watched with growing worry as Serena sat down on Raye's bed and gave her a long look before saying softly, "Come here, Reenie." Reenie did so letting Luna Ball go in the process. It took up a floating position behind her, as if trying to offer her moral support.

When the youngster reached Serena, she opened her mouth and was about to launch into a plea to stay when the blonde raised a hand to stop her. "I was wrong to treat you like a little kid."

Reenie felt her jaw dropping open as her eyes widened. "Huh?!" Was about the extent that she could get in her speech; she was so surprised.

Serena smiled a little. "I thought it would be fun to hold hands but I shouldn't have forced you to do it."

"Yeah!" Reenie replied, nodding her head and looking stern, "Or pick me up."

"Or pick you up," Serena agreed. "I guess that I was a little worried about you though. I mean what if the Negaverse attacks?" That question completely took the wind out of Reenie's sails and she began feeling bad again. "I'm disappointed in you though. You promised Mom that you'd be on your best behavior. I know you don't think that I'm cool like Darien but I thought you'd keep your promise to her." The youngster shuffled her feet and hung her head. Serena put an elbow on her knee and rested her chin in her hand. "I thought we were gonna have fun together."

Reenie peeked up at Serena who was looking a little down. "Are ya gonna send me home?"

"What do you think I should do?"

"I don't know." The girl hooked her index fingers together and twisted them. "I guess..." She squirmed and then asked, "Why didn't you wanna go see Darien?" The youngster looked up as Serena put both her hands on her shoulders.

"Sweetheart, Darien and I aren't getting along at the moment. He... he doesn't want to be around me." The pink-haired girl was a little upset when she saw the blonde's eyes mist over. For a moment, Reenie thought Serena would cry but the older girl only shook her head, sat up straight, and shrugged. "So are you going to keep your promise to Mom?" The seven year old nodded rapidly; Serena smiled at her. "Well, short of you taking the Silver Crystal again, I don't think you could do anything that would get you sent home." The blonde continued after a moment of silence, "That doesn't mean I'm gonna let you have the run of the place, young lady."

"I know..." The youngster mumbled, "I'm sorry."

"That's okay..." Serena rolled her shoulders and sighed. "Man, this is getting tight."

Reenie's eyes went wide and she stared at her cousin for a moment. 'She sorta looks like Mommy...' That thought made her feel a little sad. 'Serena is nice... and she is Sailor Moon.' More as a way of making a peace offering as anything else Reenie asked, "Do you want a hug?" Serena slowly smiled and nodded so the little girl climbed into Serena's lap and wrapped her arms about the blonde's neck. She snuggled closer as Serena hugged her in return. After a moment, Serena allowed the hug to fall away and she shifted.

"What is it with these clothes?" the blonde complained. "It's like I had a major growth spurt or something..."

"Um..." Reenie began and then paused. When her cousin gave her a curious look, she started in a more cautious tone, "Amy said she was gettin' littler. Her clothes were too big."

"When," Serena began in a mildly stern tone, "Was Amy here?"

"Just before you came in."

"So you were talking to her while you were in a timeout?"

Reenie winced but offered quickly, "She was having lot of trouble with her clothes. They were too big. It'd be like me wearing Lita's." Serena's eyes went wide at that image. "See, so I sorta offered to have Luna Ball make some for her and they fit." And then deciding it couldn't hurt anything, she continued, "Amy wanted me to come and help but I said you had put me in a timeout so I couldn't." The little girl was relieved when Serena gave her an approving look.

"Well, young lady, do you think Luna Ball can do the same for me?" Reenie nodded. "Make with the hocus-pocus and then, we'll both go help out at the booth."

- - - - -

"Girls, we need to formulate a plan of action," Amy announced as the tide of customers ebbed for a moment.

"Yeah..." Mina asked while looking down at her dress. With her relative lack of feminine curves, even she had to admit that it no longer had the effect she had hoped for. 'I wish Reenie was here. She could make me a new dress.' She frowned then made a quick comparison. 'Do I really look that young? I'm bigger than _both_ of them are.'

"Yeah, but what's the question?" Lita asked.

"Do we close down or stick it out?"

"Guys, I vote stick it out," Lita interjected. "I'm having too much fun!"

"I agree. Closing now is bound to cause problems. It's not like we're having trouble." Mina fluffed her hair up. "Besides with me around, no one will think that you CHILDREN are unsupervised."

"Oh?" both younger looking girls asked dangerously.

"Of course, my young friends... I'm a good baby-sitter and..." Mina trailed off and frowned as Lita snorted derisively. She stepped towards the small brunette and loomed over her. "Got a problem?"

"You ain't so grownup, blondie."

"Says you. I am only experiencing SLIGHT asset loss..." Mina remarked pointedly while throwing out her chest with its small but definite curves. "Unlike some..." She tapped Lita on the nose. "I'm not in any danger."

"Yet..." Amy remarked dryly. 'I'd estimate fifteen minutes.'

"Jeez, you're sure being a gloomy Gus, aren't you?" the ponytailed brunette asked of her blue-haired friend.

"My clothes are starting to get larger again... I believe that we are all still regressing." Amy frowned and then shook her head. "And Mina, I would not recommend trying to use your larger stature to enforce your will upon us."

"Amy! I... I wouldn't do that!" the blonde protested. She wasn't that kind of person. Little Carrie would attest to that. "But just out of curiosity, why not?"

"Lita can still transform and I shudder to think what a '_Sparkling Wide Pressure_' attack would do to your hair." The ribbon-wearing blonde blinked and then paled.

"I'd look like a demo of a static charge machine." She grinned nervously at the Jovian Scout. "Sorry."

"Not a problem, girlfriend," Lita replied with a grin and then hugged Mina.

"You're taking this awfully well."

"I'm sure that Ames and Raye will figure it out." 'They always do.' Amy wasn't so sure but Lita's confidence would make her redouble her efforts. "Like I said though, I'm having fun being a kid again."

"I guess that would be okay..." Mina remarked a thoughtful look on her face, "And I suppose we SHOULD act like we are the age we look like."

"Okay... But if we pretend to be our apparent physical ages... What will we do if someone requests a parental unit?" Both Lita and Mina stared at Amy in confusion. Before the Sailor Scout of Mercury could offer clarification, things got busy once more.

- - - - -

A short time later, Serena Tsukino slowly pivoted so that her cousin could look her over. "Well?" The pink-haired girl gave her well-aged cousin a critical look while chewing on her bottom lip. "What's the matter?" Serena asked. She looked down at the clothes Luna Ball had generated and then back up at the little girl.

'Why did Luna Ball make her something like that?' the youngster wondered, only vaguely aware of Serena's question. 'She could be Mommy... sort of.' The clothing the magical floating ball had chosen was simple, yet elegant. No one would mistake Serena for a teenager.

"Reenie?"

"Sorry," Reenie commented while shaking her head, "You look pretty." She smiled as her cousin smiled. "Let's go help Amy and Lita." Serena nodded and headed for the door. The youngster scampered after her squeezing past her in the doorway. "Should we take some robes?"

"No, I think they'd just get in the way." 'I hope Mina's back from sulking.' Serena glanced at her watch. "Twenty minutes until midnight." Her cousin blinked and moved close so she could look at Serena's watch. "You gettin' tired?"

"Nope!" Reenie chirped and then added, "Let's go help!"

The duo walked rapidly towards the booth but slowed as they realized the size of the crowd, which had flooded the Cherry Hill Temple grounds. As they got closer to the cookie booth, they could hear what sounded like a disturbance.

"I WANT TO TALK WITH YOUR MOTHER!" a rather rotund woman practically shrieked. Her girth would likely make any mountain jealous.

"What's..." Reenie began as she came into the back of the booth but came to an abrupt stop upon seeing three young girls. She recognized the smallest as Amy. The clothes that she had made her were already getting loose. It took Reenie a little longer to connect the ribbon-wearing blonde with Mina. The Sailor Scout of Venus looked like a fourth-grader.

It took Reenie a few moments to connect the skinny brunette before her with Lita. What gave her the clue was her distinctive ponytail. The youngster was momentarily confused why Lita, who looked about the same size as her, except skinnier, was wearing clothes that fit. Then it struck her. "Hey! You're wearing my stuff!"

Serena, who had followed the seven year old into the booth, looked about her in shocked bewilderment. She had been expecting Amy to be slightly different in appearance, thanks mainly to Reenie's description of the blue-haired girl's clothing issues. The meatball-headed blonde had not expected Lita or Mina to be so dramatically effected as well.

Even before she could comment on the surreal scene playing out before her, the woman who had been shouting demanded of Serena, "Are you this child's mother?!" She jabbed a finger towards Lita.

Before Serena could answer either way, Lita piped in, "Don't listen to her, _Mommy_!" The brunette tried hard not to grin as Reenie's head whipped around so she could stare at Lita, mouth agape. "Wow, you're pretty!" The new youngster ran over and gave Serena a hug around her legs.

'Serena is taller and more developed,' Amy noted clinically and then blinked. 'This is most unexpected.'

"What are you doing, Lita?" Serena inquired in bewilderment.

"I'll tell you what she's doing!" the woman yelled. "YOUR little girl is being disrespectful of her elders."

"I just said, MO-OMMY," Lita began with twinkling eyes, "That since she took a big ol' bite of the cookie, that she couldn't get no refund just 'cause she don't like it."

"It was disgusting!"

"Reenie," Serena instructed firmly, "You stay and help Mina and Amy. Lita, come with me." She regarded the woman. "Madam, let's step to the side so the rest of the customers can make their purchases." The blonde wasn't sure the barrel of a woman would move but was relieved when she did. She disappeared around the corner.

"What are you doing?" she asked her little friend in a hushed voice.

Lita just grinned. "Serena... You're older! We were worried you'd be small too." She giggled as the former teen now woman frowned. She stood on her tiptoes and continued in a quiet voice, "Okay, here's the four-one-one. That fat hag's been yelling for my mom. You're a perfect fit... in a way."

"Hummm..." was Serena's reply. She then motioned Lita to follow her. The pair left the booth and rounded the corner to find the woman standing, arms crossed, and a scowl on her face. "I would like to understand what happened. You made a purchase and found something wrong with it?" The woman nodded, her scowl not moving an inch. "What was the problem?"

"As I said, it was disgusting!"

"Says you, lady!" Lita shot back, facing growing red. She was tired of this woman insulting her cooking.

"And then, YOUR daughter had the nerve to tell me I was too fat to appreciate it!"

Serena glanced towards Lita but she couldn't gauge the girl's expression in the shadows beside the booth. "So you asked for your money back?"

"I most certainly did!"

"Ma'am, you do realize that that we are selling these cookies to raise money for the Cherry Hill Temple?" The woman grunted. "And by wanting a refund, you are denying the temple your donation."

"It's not a very impressive temple... I heard the priest who runs it is a dirty old man." The woman sniffed.

Serena placed a hand on the little brunette beside her who had stiffened at the words of the woman. "Lita, get the lady her money."

"But Mommy, this..."

Serena bent down and looked right into her friend's eyes. 'Plan huh? We'll see about that.' "I spank sassy little girls, y'know." Lita's eyes widened.

"But..." The brunette's eyes held Serena's for a moment and then lowered.

"Lita..." Serena stated firmly but gently, "Get the woman her money. I'll replace it out of my own pocket."

Grumbling, the child stomped off and returned a few moments later with some money. "Here," she huffed, shoving the money towards the large woman. The woman snatched it and rapidly counted it.

"Good. Now what about her?" the woman questioned.

"What about Lita?"

"Are you going to let her talk to me like that?"

"How I settle this is between me and... my daughter." She regarded the younger girl. "Isn't that right, Lita?"

"Yeah..." the brunette agreed, although reluctantly.

"Go on back," Serena directed. "I wanna few private words." Lita did so, although not before giving the former customer a dirty look.

- - - - -

"What happened to you?" Reenie asked as Lita came back into the booth. Before Lita could respond, she turned and declared, "There ya go."

"Thank you, young lady," an elderly man responded and shuffled away, sweets in hand.

"It's pretty simple. I woke up from my nap and I was like this," Lita explained while squeezing in between Reenie and Mina.

"But what caused it?"

"Who knows," Lita shrugged. "What would you like?" she asked a teenage boy.

"One of each," he answered.

'My cookies...' Reenie began but a group of giggling sixth-grade girls appearing together disrupted her train of thought.

"So, how are things going?" Serena asked.

"Did you give her what for, MOMMY?" Lita asked Serena hopefully.

"Lita... you and I need to talk," Serena growled.

Reenie winced. She'd heard that tone before. "Man... You're in SO much trouble!" she commented to Lita who started to look mildly worried. Serena shot Reenie a frown but didn't say anything.

"Not until we're done here, Auntie Serena," little Amy spoke up and turned back to a young couple, "That'll be five even, sir."

"Yeah, Mommy, it's just too busy," the preteen Mina agreed with a grin. "Right, little sis?"

Reenie for her part just shook her head in disbelief; things were starting to get very weird. 'Are they nuts wanting Serena as their mommy? I thought they wanted to have fun tonight...' The pink-haired girl shot her cousin a quick look. 'Well, Serena can be fun...'

- - - - -

Raye Hino handed a charm to Mrs. Wolanski and smiled. The woman was older and smaller than Raye's grandfather was. She had been coming to the temple regularly since Raye could remember. The husband wasn't much taller than his wife was. "Shall we go, dear?" Mr. Wolanski asked his wife.

"Yes," she replied taking his arm, "The night is young and we have lots of pep left." She smiled at Raye. "So do you have a beau?"

Raye blinked. "Err... not yet."

Mrs. Wolanski tsked softly, "Well... Don't waste time, young lady. We're celebrating our eighty-first wedding anniversary tonight." She turned away from Raye, who was staring in stunned disbelief, and continued, "Come on, dear, let's go find a party to crash!" And with that, the elderly couple wandered off into the crowd.

'I don't believe it,' Raye thought to herself as she handed out a charm to a young couple. 'At least things are quiet... so far.' The shrine maiden was more than a little relieved to have things going so well. She hadn't been able to check in on Serena and the others since her turn around the grounds as Sailor Mars. Nevertheless, she knew her friend Amy (at least) was responsible and would keep the others in line. She frowned as Darien appeared in front of her.

"What do you want?" she asked him, the hint of frostiness coming into her voice. 'I can't believe I burned a torch for this creep.'

"Is that any way to treat a paying customer?" Darien asked, trying to sound pleasant, "I want a charm."

"You are _not_ a customer..." Raye disagreed but then shook her head. "Okay, I don't have time... What type of charm?"

"A general good luck one?"

"Going after ANOTHER girl, eh?" the priestess asked as she starting hunting for a good charm.

"No... Maybe give me good luck to apologize to Serena."

Raye's hand froze. "What for?" the raven-haired girl questioned, her eyes narrowing. Her naïve friend didn't need her heart broken again.

"For spoiling her date."

"Date?!" Raye screeched, her eyes going wide.

"She was on a date with some high school kid... and I... um... sorta broke it up."

"That was stupid."

Darien rubbed his cheek where Serena had slapped him. "Hmmm..." 'You have no idea.'

End of Chapter 4

Coming next in **Chapter 5 - Fireworks**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	5. Chapter 5 Fireworks

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 5 - Fireworks**

**S**erena Tsukino sat in their cookie booth. She watched silently as a young couple across from her mulled over their choice of the remaining cookies and sighed internally. Taking a moment, she glanced over her shoulder. A blue-haired girl about six years old (to the uninitiated observer) was sitting on a metal chair with her feet dangling over the edge. The girl looked as if she'd like to cry but didn't have the energy for it. Serena really couldn't blame her shy friend though. Being elbowed in the forehead, even accidentally, was bound to hurt. She resisted the urge to go and cuddle Amy. Serena doubted her friend would appreciate the gesture.

The newly grown adult then glanced to her "_children_"; both Mina and Lita were sitting quietly in separate corners in the back of the booth where she had sent them. The brunette had gone meekly enough. Mina still looked unrepentant. Serena flared her nostrils. 'Mina shouldn't've told Amy that she hadn't seen her because she was _so_ small.'

She stared at the back of the culprit's head adorned with a huge almost comical red ribbon and thought, 'Mina ain't so grownup herself now.' Her friend was definitely prepubescent. Serena had literally needed to pull rank over her professed second-in-command. Said Scout now shifted as if she could feel her princess' intense gaze literally boring into her from behind. 'If she wants to play at being my daughter...' The woman flicked her eyes towards Reenie; the youngster was practicing being invisible.

"Like I just don't know..." the young woman of the couple began. Serena turned back to focus her attention on the customers.

Serena seriously questioned if there was a streak of silly going around this evening. She noticed the young woman's hairstyle. 'I wonder if she's a cheerleader?' She had her brown hair in streaming pigtails and looked like she's might still be in high school. 'Not that they aren't cute but still... They're not half as long as mine.' Serena speculated that maybe she did it at her boyfriend's request. The young man with her looked about Darien's age. 'Just a love-struck schoolgirl I guess.' That raised rather interesting questions about her ex-boyfriend, which Serena firmly pushed away. After all, she was available.

It was a quarter of midnight and the crowd was slowly gathering for the ceremony to herald in the New Year. Grandpa Hino and Chad were on the platform. "I tell you what, guys," Serena interjected after looking at her watch as the couple's indecision persisted, "I'll let you clean us out at a reduced price." She then quickly came up with a reasonable sounding price for her remaining stock.

A couple minutes later, the coeds were walking away satisfied carrying a bag of assorted sweets in hand. Reenie posted up the large "

"Nah, we'll clean up tomorrow."

"So what are we gonna do, Serena?" Mina asked, although not as petulantly as the meatball-headed blonde had expected.

"I thought we'd go watch the fireworks." Mina and Lita brightened.

"Y-you know, Amy... I didn't mean to elbow you," Mina confessed, trying to look as if she were an angel who'd just misplaced her halo. Much to Reenie's annoyance, Mina managed the act better than she herself normally did.

"I know..." the first-grader replied and then yawned, "You wouldn't do it on purpose, Mina."

"I'm sorry..." Mina was looking hopeful, glanced to Lita, and then gave Amy a quick hug.

"Well, now that that's settled, sis," Lita piped up, and looking less annoyed with Mina by the moment, "I think we should find a good spot." She grinned and an instant later had tapped Mina on the nose, making her friend sneeze. "TAG, YOU'RE IT!" And with that, the Sailor Scout of Jupiter ran from the booth sporting a huge grin.

"I'm gonna get you!" Mina shouted and ran after the little ponytailed brunette.

"You sure you're okay, Amy?" The spot on her forehead was still slightly discolored.

"I'm fine, _Auntie_ Sewena," Amy squeaked, a wan smile coming onto her features, "Just tired... My head doesn't ache anymore." The youngster stifled another yawn. "I think I'll pass on the fireworks, Auntie." She giggled. "My new physiology is not up for it."

"Reenie," Serena directed, "You take Amy inside and help her get settled. Maybe into some PJs." The Sailor Scout of Mercury seemed to perk up at this particular proposal.

"Thanks... Reenie can come out and watch the fireworks after she gets Luna Ball to produce some adjusted clothing for me." The six year old slid from the chair, dropped to the ground, and looked down at her clothing. "Even these are starting to get loose."

"That's okay. It's best that Reenie stays with you." The seven year old had expected something like that.

"Okay Serena," Reenie agreed, "Uh... Do I have to go to bed?"

The young woman gave the second-grader an inquiring look and then grinned at Reenie. "No, pumpkin, go on and help Amy. We'll be along in a few minutes."

- - - - -

It took Serena several minutes to catch up with Mina and Lita. She was starting to feel tired, although it was more a blurring of her edges than anything else. During her search, Serena had spotted Raye, and had even considered going over to the shrine maiden to gloat but Chad had appeared. So the meatball-headed blonde had decided not to disturb them.

She only found Mina and Lita when the pair nearly ran into her. "Hi-ee Mommy!" Mina chirped, grinning and then squawked as Lita pushed past her and gave Serena a massive hug around her legs. Apparently not to be outdone, Mina came over and hugged Serena as well.

"What have you two been up to?" Serena asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," Lita assured her and smiled revealing a missing front tooth.

"Yeah, nothing... We're perfect little angels."

Serena snorted, which caused both youngsters to smirk. "I don't wanna know... Well, let's find a place to watch the bell ringing. Looks like Grandpa Hino's giving everything one majorly last check."

"Pick me up, Mommy!" Lita demanded and when the young woman gave her a puzzled look, she added, "I wanna see the fireworks after." Serena gave Lita a dubious expression for a moment and then nodded.

"What about me?!" Mina demanded, although not sounding very disappointed as Serena lifted the seven year old brunette up and settled her onto her shoulders. The irony was not lost on her.

Lita for her part giggled and gently grabbed the pair of meatballs atop Serena's head. It had been a long time since she was small enough to ride upon anyone's shoulders. "Oh, so that's what these are for."

"Should I use Mommy's pigtails as a seatbelt, sis?" the ten year old blonde inquired.

"Don't even think about it, young lady." She only grinned and took Serena's hand instead.

"You okay, Mommy?" Lita asked.

"Yes, just don't shift about up there. You have a bony butt."

- - - - -

Meanwhile, Raye looked up from the neat pile of leftover charms as the first tolls of the temple bell began. She waited for a moment, thinking about the past year, frowned slightly, and then carefully tucked the charms away. She and Chad, mostly Chad, would take down the booth the next day. Stepping out, she carefully stepped into the shadows and withdrew her transformation pen. 'One more turn about the temple. Better safe than sorry.' She waited for the first burst of fireworks to show overhead before speaking the words that would transform her.

Moments later, Sailor Mars quietly and quickly made her way around the Cherry Hill Temple grounds pausing now and then to see if she could sense any evil presence. She was nearing the empty cookie stand as the fireworks climaxed. Thanks to a lot of the trees, some of the fireworks couldn't be seen, but there was enough visible in the clear night sky to elate the assembled spectators.

She paused and couldn't help but smile a little in satisfaction as she saw the "Sold Out" sign hanging on the stand her friends had manned. The Sailor Scout of Mars spent a few minutes within that booth, carefully examining the area for negative auras. She did not sense anything though and the fiery magical girl moved on, unseen by the crowd.

She had briefly considered going to help her grandfather but then thought better of it. Chad was there. She smiled mischievously knowing her sexy teenage curves would only serve to distract the young acolyte. She had no desire to do that tonight.

The raven-haired girl then frowned. 'Did the girls have more help?' If she believed the few snippets of conversation she had overheard, not only were Amy and the others helping but also a pack of Girl Scouts. Cavity inducing ones if Raye believed one particular comment. 'They really shouldn't have conscripted kids to do their work for them. I'll ask them later.'

- - - - -

While Serena was looking for her wayward "_children_" and Raye was shutting down her booth, Amy and Reenie were preparing for bed. Now Reenie sat upon the closed toilet lid watching Amy with some consternation. The youngster was meticulously washing her face with more precision than was really necessary. 'For a little kid, Amy's _way_ too serious.' She was glad that Aunt Ellen or Serena didn't insist on making her do that.

The blue-haired girl had laid out what she called a "_plan of attack_" for preparing for bed. The pink-haired second-grader doubted any baby kindergartener would be so meticulous, even she wasn't that precise, and she was older than Amy was now... and a princess to boot.

First had come the toilet and much to Reenie's surprise, the blue-haired youngster had wanted the older girl present, just in case something went wrong. Reenie still hadn't quite figured out what the super genius of the group had meant by that. Amy washed her hands and then started brushing her teeth and now her face.

Reenie sighed a little and gazed towards the ground. 'What went wrong?' she thought to herself, 'This was supposed to be fun.' And while the others were having some fun, she was heartily wishing she could go back in time and redo things over.

"I'm sorry, Reenie, that you couldn't join the others to observe the pyrotechnic exhibition," Amy said softly guessing the little girl's consternation.

The pink-haired girl assumed that meant watch the fireworks. She looked up and gave the younger girl a weak smile. "I know, Amy... but me and Serena, well..." Reenie shrugged, not really sure how to explain. "Being on my best behavior is REALLY hard." Amy grinned.

"You should get ready too."

- - - - -

Sometime later, Amy was feeling moderately better after having prepared for bed, with varying amounts of help from Reenie. Now as she sat in Raye's room looking over the neat pile of clothing Luna Ball had just produced for her, Amy realized that her companion appeared rather mortified.

"What's the matter?" Amy who could now barely pass for a kindergartener asked.

Reenie for her part gave the little girl an apologetic look, and then mutely waved at the clothing. "I don't get what Luna Ball was doing." She gave her floating companion a sour look. She wasn't trying to humiliate her friend.

Amy gave the pink-haired girl a puzzled look, shrugged, and carefully removed the stuffed toy cat, which was resting atop the neatly folded clothing. In rapid order, she changed into a new set of underpants and a set of blue bunny-footed and kitten bedecked girl's size 4T pajamas. The last item was apparently the source of Reenie's consternation because the little girl made a noise of distress and turned several shades of pink.

Amy hugged herself and grinned. "Oh these feel nice!" She giggled and gave Luna Ball a hug. "You do great work. You know that?" she asked the floating cat's head.

"Are you serious?!" Reenie squeaked. The former studious teen was now the epitome of a cute little girl.

"Sure I am, COUSIN," Amy stated quite firmly, "It's not his... her? Anyway, Luna Ball made clothing decisions based on my physiological makeup..." She paused and tapped her lip in thought.

"Phys... Physi-whatsit?" the seven year old inquired, eyes starting to cross as she tried to say the tongue twister of a word. It was disconcerting having a "baby" continually show her up.

By way of reply, Amy pulled out her pen and shouted, "MERCUWY STAR POWER!" And in a flash, she transformed into Sailor Mercury. The pink-haired girl, blinking spots away from her eyes, watched in fascination as Mercury sat down on the floor cross-legged, pulled out her minicomputer, and activated her VR visor.

"What are you doing?" Reenie asked the cute little Sailor Scout.

"I'm twying... trying to localize the effects of our current situation. I also wish to determine why the reactive portion of the incident has had a contra-effect on Sewena's physiology." 'Darn, my old lisp is back.' The older girl's eyes started to glaze as well as cross. Before her brain could do something drastic to save itself, the door opened.

Reenie turned around and watched as a giggling, and rather cheerful looking, Mina skipped into the room twirled about once and then did a cartwheel. "This is GREAT!" she shouted and was about to say more but then noticed Lita charging into the room. "Crud!" Mina exclaimed and took off towards Raye's bed just as Lita was lunging apparently intent on tackling the beribboned girl.

Reenie turned back to see what Amy made of it all but the Sailor Scout of Mercury was busily alternating between tapping at her keyboard and peering intently at her two regressed friends.

Lita for her part missed Mina and landed rather hard on the floor with enough force to knock the wind out of her. "NA! NA!" the ribbon-wearing blonde jeered from her position on Raye's bed, "Lita's a slowpoke!"

The brunette in question raised her head, cupped a cheek in one hand, and said something, which, for once, made Amy's eyes cross. Mina's mouth swung open and she stared at Lita.

"What does..." Reenie began, wanting to know exactly what Lita had meant but wasn't able to finish.

"You be careful, SIS," Mina chided, a smirk coming onto her face, "or Serena will wash your mouth out with soap."

"Oh..." the pink-haired girl remarked, eyes widening and then she frowned, "You're not calling Serena Mommy then?" she questioned Mina who appeared maybe a couple years older than her.

"No way," replied while waving the idea away, "Our princess is a great person and all and I'd follow her into hell but... I have my own parents."

"Who let you get away with murder," the brunette interjected and then grinned as her friend stuck her tongue out. Lita pushed herself into a sitting position, yawned, and rubbed her eyes. "Amy, Reenie, don't listen to her. She just gets away with so much 'cause she's bigger."

"Do not!" Mina shouted and then in a quieter tone added, "I'm just cuter."

"Oh brother," was the brunette's only comment while she rolled her eyes. "Anyway, until I'm back to normal, I'm keeping up appearances."

The Sailor Scout of Venus didn't respond apparently distracted by something. She shifted from foot to foot on Raye's bed and then grinned. "Bouncy!" the little blonde declared and started bouncing up and down on it.

This activity came to an abrupt halt however moments later when Serena entered the room. Serena gave Mina only a mild look of reproof and then asked, "Who wants hot chocolate?"

"Yes pwe-please!" Sailor Mercury responded and with another flash of light changed back to Amy Anderson. She got herself to her feet, looked about for the stuffed toy, and then toddled over to Serena. "I'll help you out, okay?"

"How young are you?" Mina asked, eyes staring intently at the pajama-clad child.

"4.478..." Amy grimaced, "Although it appears that I am still we-regressing."

"Am I?" Mina squeaked in a voice full of horror.

Amy understood that Mina's elbow to her forehead had been an accident. On the other hand, it had hurt. So instead of answering the question, at least right away, Amy hugged the toy animal to her chest, stuck a thumb into her mouth, and in her best little kid's voice asked Serena, "Ken I have a mawshmallow too, Auntie?"

Serena seemed to fight an internal battle for a moment and then shrugged. "You're probably going to kill me later but you're just too cute!" With that, she swept down on Amy and scooped the little girl up into a massive hug. Still holding her, she continued, "So who else wants hot chocolate?"

- - - - -

Sailor Mars gave up her patrol and headed for her room. She would transform back to regular old Raye Hino in her room. Not only would that avoid the possibility of being spotted but also she'd be able to change into better fitting clothes.

Her steps faltered as she approached her room. 'What are they doing?' she wondered as a torrent of high-pitched giggling poured through the door. 'Did that meatball-brain invite those Girl Scouts to spend the night without asking me?' Squaring her shoulders, the raven-haired girl detransformed and marched towards her bedroom, a stern look on her face. Raye was just reaching for the doorknob when the door sprang open and a blond streak came shooting out into the hallway.

An instant later, Raye went down in a tangle of arms and legs, not to mention a liberal amount of surprised squealing. Even before the shrine maiden could sort out who had attacked her, Lita Kino still a child appeared in her bedroom doorway.

"MINA!" Lita shouted, "YOU'RE MINE!"

"M-Mina?!" Raye demanded looking down at the struggling child. She managed to sort out her own arms and legs before a grinning, blue-eyed blond girl not much older than Reenie wearing a big red ribbon smiled up at her.

"Hiya, Auntie Raye!" the girl giggled, gave Raye a somewhat sloppy kiss, bounced to her feet, and promptly vanished down the hall.

"Don't worry, Raye. I'll bring her back," Lita promised. Raye noticed she was younger than the last time she had seen her. "By the way, Happy New Year!" She rushed headlong after the fleeing blonde.

The thoroughly confused priestess looked wildly around until her eyes fell on a blue-haired youngster. It took her a few moments to connect the little girl's features to her bookish friend Amy Anderson. Her eyes widened as the preschooler gave her a wide grin and waved.

"Hi Waye!" Amy greeted her fiery friend.

"What the hell is going on?!" Raye demanded, sitting up and glaring about her, as if hoping a Negaverse creature would appear so she could blast it.

"Don't swear, Raye," admonished a twenty-something woman with long golden pigtails who stepped up behind Amy.

Raye felt her jaw drop in surprise. 'She looks...' "S-Serena?" 'Can't be...'

"You like?" She spun around to give her now shorter friend a look.

"What happened?" Raye asked, standing up and glancing over her shoulder, just in case Mina decided to tackle her again.

"Come inside and we can explain. I'm sure Amy wants to run a scan on you anyway." Amy nodded. As the raven-haired girl staggered into her bedroom trying desperately to figure out what the universe was trying to do to her, Serena turned to a rather normal looking Reenie and commanded, "Go hunt up Lita and Mina and tell them to come back here."

"I don't think they'll listen to me, Serena," Reenie commented from her position against the wall, which she'd taken up when the chase had started.

"Right," the meatball-headed woman remarked, sighed, and then grinned, "You and Raye can watch Amy. I'll go round up my wayward chil..."

"Then hot chocowate?" Amy asked hopefully.

"Well, Raye is here now so yes, I think so."

"YEAH!" both Reenie and Amy cheered.

As the Serena left the room, Raye loomed over her much smaller friend and asked in a very tight voice, "Amy, WHAT exactly has happened?" She was startled when Amy gave a nervous squeak and ran over to Reenie and hid behind the seven year old.

"Oh sure, hide behind me."

"You're talwer than I am," Amy pointed out and then suggested to Raye, "I think you'd better sit down." She was not reassured when her friend instead crossed her arms and started tapping her foot.

'And I thought Serena was scary,' Reenie thought, wishing she had left with her cousin.

- - - - -

Mina and Lita skidded to a stop inside the temple kitchen and covered their mouths as Serena made shushing motions. "You want Grandpa Hino or Chad in here?"

"Sorry," little Lita mumbled out from behind her hand, "It's Mina's fault."

"Why thank you, darling." She curtsied cutely.

Serena rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's get some snacks before Amy comes rushing in here. She sounded like she could eat a horse."

"Okay Mommy," the brunette chirped.

"You know," Serena commented, "Since we're not in public, you can drop the act." It was starting to make her feel old. The youngster pouted. "You can't honestly tell me that you'd majorly want me as your mom."

"Sure, why not?" Mina asked. The ribbon-wearing blonde looked genuinely puzzled. "After all, you have the heart the size of the Moon..." Then grinning, the nine year old blonde amended, "Maybe even the whole universe."

"My _big sis_ wants something," Lita commented dryly and then squealed as Mina poked her in the side, hitting a ticklish spot.

"I'll get the hot chocolate. You gals hunt something up to munch on. I bet Raye will be hungry too since she didn't have a lot of help." Serena walked over and rumpled Mina's hair. "And whatever it is, young lady, the answer is no."

"What makes you think I want anything?" Mina asked.

"I live with Reenie, wheedler extraordinaire. In terms of technique, I'll give you a three out of ten for effort," the woman drawled. Mina pouted and then scowled as Lita giggled.

- - - - -

Ten minutes later, Raye Hino sat glowering at a very diminutive Sailor Mercury. Mercury, who had taken up residence on Serena's lap, was happily munching crackers and cheese and drinking hot chocolate.

"Well?!" the fiery priestess asked.

"Whup?" Sailor Mercury asked, held a hand to forestall any answer, and chewed a moment longer. It certainly wasn't a very healthy snack but frankly, the youngster didn't care, her tummy had been rather hollow. After swallowing, she asked, "What do you want to know?"

"What happened?" She pointed with her index finger at Lita who was sitting to the right of Serena. "She's smaller than before and she..." Here, Raye jabbed her thumb towards Mina who was sitting beside her on the bed. "Has claimed the loony crown."

"Oh goody!" Mina squeaked, "I'm a queen too!" She then, much to the raven-haired girl's annoyance, hugged her, and added, "I dub Raye my _extra_ special court jester."

"I thought court jesters were supposed to be funny," Lita remarked curiously.

"Oh, not in Loony Kingdom," Mina replied seriously, "A court jester in Loony Kingdom must be serious ALL the time and walk around with a big scowl." The cute little blonde wrinkled her forehead into her fiercest of scowls. "They have to also ask, '_CAN'T YOU BE SERIOUS?!_'"

Lita and Reenie started giggling. Amy, who'd been trying to finish off her hot chocolate, nearly choked. As it was, she dribbled hot chocolate down her front. She was thankful when Serena presented her with a tissue and she dabbed at the spots on her pajamas. She sighed and looked mournfully at her cup; it was pretty much empty.

"Here," Serena offered, "You can have mine." She'd taken a sip and decided not to bother with the sweet beverage.

"T'anks."

"Look," Raye said with as much dignity as she could, "How old are you?"

"I am curwently 4.112 years old," the blue-haired toddler replied, "Given my analysis of the datum available, I will finish my wegression at age twee plus or minus some weeks."

"And her?" Raye asked jabbing her thumb at Mina who was still making faces. "Honestly, can't you act your age?" Before the ribbon-wearing blonde could reply, Raye corrected acidly, "Your REAL age?"

"Sorry," Mina said, her face smoothing into seriousness.

"Curwently, Mina is 9.261 years old. My projection indicates her wegression should complete shortly and end at just under 9 years old." Mercury tapped a few keys. "Lita's wegression has stopped and is currently physically at 6.989 years of age."

"What about me?" Serena asked, "I think I'm still getting older."

"You are corwect. Sewena is curwently 34.266 years old and progwessing. Your projected final age is 42.3 years."

"Jeez Louise! I'll be older than Mom," the meatball-headed woman muttered.

"Has Reenie been affected?"

"Negative," the blue-haired Scout replied, "She is showing no ill effects."

"Well... I suppose it could've been worse. Thank the Kami that I was not affected too," the priestess commented.

"Um..."

"What?" Raye demanded, eyes narrowing, "There's something you didn't tell me?"

"You aren't going to wike it," Amy commented.

"Spit it out!"

"You have wegressed in age to 12.771."

"WHAT?!"

"I said..."

"I know what you said!" Raye interrupted jumping to her feet. "I mean you can't be right. I wasn't even with you guys all night!"

Mercury swiveled around to regard Serena and remarked, "You know, Waye is scawy."

"Don't worry, pumpkin. Reenie here will save you from big bad _Waye_."

Reenie turned and gave her cousin an alarmed look. "Me?!" she squeaked, and then in a plaintive tone remarked, "Jeez, Serena, if you wannna punish me... just spank me!" This set Mina and Lita off into a new round of giggles.

The raven-haired girl shot to her feet. "Raye, please sit down so Amy can explain." Looking annoyed, she complied and folded her arms.

"You have wegressed, although not as much," Mercury explained, "You will stop wegwessing at appwoximately twelve. You are corwect though that the data points to a catalyst which we have ALL had direct contact with recently."

"What does that mean?" Reenie asked.

"It means whatever made us de-age was something we all came into contact with."

"Oh..." the pink-haired seven year old remarked and then asked, "So why couldn't Amy just say that?"

"She wouldn't be Amy then," Serena offered and hugged her little friend.

"We must've had contact with whatever it was for varying amounts of time," Raye mused looking thoughtful.

"That was my thinking given our age discr..." Mercury paused, glanced towards Reenie, and amended, "I mean since we are different ages we wikely had different amounts of contact with the source."

"But I didn't pick up any Negaenergy," Raye assured them. "I went around as Sailor Mars after the festival but I didn't sense anything."

"I did not detect any either," Mercury agreed.

"So what did this?" Mina asked, still in serious mode, "And more importantly, when will it end?"

"Well?" Raye asked her blue-haired friend.

"Insufficient data for me to say what did this..." Little Mercury paused, seemed to gather her courage, and continued, "And I don't think it will end."

"**WHAT?!**" was the shout.

"There is no evidence that this condition is temporary," Mercury clarified.

"It could be," Reenie chimed in.

Mina gave her a suspicious look. "You didn't have anything to do with this, did you?"

"No," the pink-haired youngster denied, "Why would I wanna do something like that to you guys?"

"Because you did before," the Shinto priestess remarked dryly.

"That was an accident," the seven year old argued. "You guys woke up okay." Raye was prevented from retorting by Serena.

"So I'm gonna be stuck old?" Serena questioned and then added, "And what's Lita gonna do?"

"I'll stick with you, MOMMY," Lita answered although some doubt was obvious in her voice. The brunette was reassured when Serena wrapped one arm about her in a comforting hug.

"Is there any way to reverse this? I like totally cannot go through childhood again!" Mina exclaimed. She had been finally to the point where the teen hunks were attracted to her.

"Sorwy, Mina. Until I can determine the cause, I can't devise a solution." Mina slumped.

"I could do a fire reading."

"It's kinda late, isn't it?" Reenie asked. The others looked at her in puzzlement. "I mean... couldn't you do it after breakfast?"

"The sooner we find out the cause, the sooner we can find the solution," Mercury countered.

"You said it, girlfriend...Well, let's go," Mina agreed standing up.

"I think I should do it myself," Raye commented making the others blinked. "Look if Grandpa sees you guys, he's gonna have a hard time understanding what a bunch of little kids are doing here in the middle of the night. And besides..." She regarded Serena. "I don't want him..." 'Or Chad...' "Hitting on the Princess."

"I think Amy should go," Serena suggested. "You are the oldest except me and she's the youngest. That'll give the Great Fire more info."

"It's not like a computer, Meatball Head," Raye remarked sourly but then sighed, "But you do have a point. It'll be easier if I have a focal point other than me." She was a bit amazed that Serena could come up with something logical without help.

"Reenie can go with you to help out. While you guys are doing that, I'll get my DAUGHTERS..." The blonde gestured to Mina and Lita. "Ready for bed."

- - - - -

Reenie Serenity Tsukino shifted uneasily as she sat in the large room housing the Great Fire. Beside her, little Amy was dozing lightly leaning against the older girl. Raye had been stoically sitting in front of the Great Fire for some time.

'Why couldn't they just go to bed?' Reenie thought and shifted, trying to stop her feet from going to sleep.

An eternity later, Raye finally turned to them. The preteen priestess gave the dozing toddler a pointed look. Reenie nudged the little girl who snorted, sat straight, and looked around blearily.

"Is it morning?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

"No..."

"Why'd you wake me up then?"

"I found something out," Raye declared. "First, it's not evil... At least, I don't believe it is."

"If it was, you'd know before, right?" the pink-haired girl asked. Raye nodded. "That's good news, right?"

"That depends," the raven-haired preteen replied.

"What did you see, Waye?" Amy asked.

"Cookies."

'Oh crap!' Reenie's thought.

End of Chapter 5

Coming next in **Chapter 6 - Crumbs to Danger...**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	6. Chapter 6 Crumbs to Danger

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 6 - Crumbs to Danger...**

"**J**eez, what's taking 'em so long?!" Mina Aino, AKA Sailor Venus, demanded from her position atop the toilet lid. She was patiently waiting for Lita, who was standing on a small stepstool next to the bathroom sink, to finish brushing her teeth. The youngster rumpled her frilly orange nightgown in frustration. 'This stupid thing makes me look like a safety pylon! Yuck!' Orange pajamas were one thing but a nightgown was something else. 'But Luna Ball gave it to me so I guess I shouldn't be picky...' And thankfully, she was too big to fit Reenie's stuff.

"Just chiwl wout," the once tall brunette mumbled around her toothbrush. Lita's pajamas were a rather garish purple. The fact that the new skinny seven year old liked the color left Mina wondering if Lita's regression had affected other things besides the brunette's substantial frontage.

"Chill out?!" Mina demanded, her big blue eyes blazing. "I don't wanna stay like this!" She tugged on her golden locks feeling more than a little frustrated. If the room had been bigger, she would have paced.

Lita Kino paused, pulled the toothbrush out, and remarked, "I don't see what your problem is, Mina." She then spat into the sink and reached for a cup to rinse then jumped down from the stepstool.

Mina, annoyed, hopped from the toilet, and loomed over the younger girl. "Listen, buster," she began, hands on her prepubescent hips, "I don't wanna stay like this, and I can't see why you aren't freaking out."

"Huh?" was her friend's puzzled remark. She backed up uncomfortably noting that she needed to look up to see into those blue eyes.

"Look," the ribbon-wearing blonde snapped almost angrily, "Stop trying to be brave! I know you don't wanna grow up again. Neither do I. I was happy with the way the things were. I had some freedom and the cute hunks were just beginning to notice me." 'Now it will be years before it happens.' She made a sour face when she thought about returning back to school as a third-grader.

"You're just worried your parents'll crackdown on you," Lita countered. She was trying to grin but failing somewhat.

"At least," Mina argued, "**I HAVE parents!**" She then realized what she said was callous considering the reason why Lita did not have parents to care for her. "Sorry, Lita, but I'm just saying you should be freaking out too. What are you gonna do? You can't live alone!"

"Serena said..." began the green-eyed brunette but the little blonde cut her off.

"Serena is a big good-hearted person but she'll never be able to look after you. She can't even take care of herself for Kami's sake."

"CAN TOO!" 'Serena can move in my apartment and...'

"Face it, Lita," Mina said harshly, eyes almost glowing with frustration, "You might think this ain't a big deal but it is. We're gonna be screwed! I mean can we even fight the Negaverse like this? And what about poor Amy? How can she be a Sailor Scout when she's a baby?"

"She can transform."

The little blonde growled in frustration. "Why are you being so thickheaded? Why can't you just admit that you're as screwed as Amy is?"

"Look, Mina, Serena says she'll look after me and I believe her," the Sailor Scout of Jupiter stated bluntly, anger starting to show in her own eyes.

"Who says," Mina pointed out, "That Serena wants a daughter like you?"

The younger girl stood there, fists clenched, eyes blazing. For one long moment, Mina thought her friend would hit her. But then the seven year old whirled, flung the door open, and ran from the room.

"Damn!" Mina muttered. She wanted to get rid of the guilty feeling so the nine year old started brushing her own teeth.

- - - - -

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" Reenie asked, trying hard not to sound anxious. She'd gone and retrieved the empty cookie trays just as Amy requested. The Sailor Scout of Mercury had been worried about possible contamination to the public. "Maybe the Great Fire got a bad log."

"That's not funny, Reenie," Raye growled. "So if it wasn't the cookies..."

"I bewieve your vision was corwect, Waye," Mercury interjected after raising her VR Visor. She rubbed her eyes; they were itchy.

"Well, if there's no trace on the trays..."

"True, but that was not the source of the cookies we consumed." The toddler looked thoughtful, yawned, and shook her head. "Sorry. Perhaps not... Reenie is not affected." 'But I am...' She felt a lump form in her throat as a new set of tears threatened to stain her cheeks. Mercury swallowed hard and renewed her focus on the data currently displayed on her computer.

"Reenie didn't have any, did you?" the raven-haired preteen declared, although her tone indicated that it was more a statement of fact. Dark eyes narrowed as the younger girl squirmed.

"No, I was full 'cause I had lots at Lita's."

"Indeed. There's one way to eliwinate the cookies as the source of the contwamination," Mercury speculated. "Reenie, could you retwieve the container that Lita used for our batch?"

"Now?"

"Pwease."

The pink-haired girl reluctantly got up, padded to the door, and opened it. She gave the preteen and toddler a brief look and then slipped out. When the door shut, Raye asked, "You okay, Amy?"

"I'm fine," the tiny Sailor Scout replied, not sounding the least bit fine. Raye wasn't fooled either. She could see the dried tears on the toddler's cheeks.

"Reenie is acting odd," the blue-haired Scout commented. Her raven-haired friend sighed and shook her head. "What?"

"That girl's gonna fight it tooth and nail." Seeing the blank look on Mercury's face, the shrine maiden sighed. "Amy, think about it for a few seconds. What magic would be around Lita's place... that WASN'T Negaenergy and could do this?"

- - - - -

The second-grader took one last look around the dark hallways of the Cherry Hill Temple private quarters, pulled her boots on and then her jacket, and slipped out into the night.

Snow had fallen several days prior but an unseasonable bout of warm weather had swept it away. Now the ground lay bare but frozen perfect for hiding the passage of people trying to slip away unobserved. The cold crisp air made her cheeks glow and tears come into her eyes. Quietly she stepped into the shadows avoiding the cleared paths and moved away from the temple buildings. 'I'm in SO much trouble!' Reenie whined as she picked her way around a thicket of barren bush branches. 'When Serena finds out, she's gonna call Aunt Ellen...' The seven year old shied away from that particular thought.

'I just wanted them to have fun,' Reenie thought bitterly, 'Why does everything I do turn out wrong?' She sniffled. 'Serena's going to REALLY mad!' And then, she thought angrily, 'Why do I even care? That Meatball Head's just gonna spank me anyway... They don't understand how hard it is. I need to be a big girl for Mommy! I need to...' Her thoughts were interrupted as her foot caught in something hidden in the darkness. She gave a yelp, flailed wildly, and fell heavily onto her side.

'Get up!' she told herself, angry that hot tears were running out of her eyes now, 'Don't cry! That's what babies do! Mommy told you to pick yourself up!' Pushing herself up, she stumbled forward, unable to see because of the darkness and her tears. Onward the pink-haired girl went for a few more moments until she bumped into a tree. Stopping, huddling, she sank down onto the ground. 'Nobody likes me.' Curling herself into a ball, she cried softly; she wanted to go home.

- - - - -

Serena watched with mounting exasperation, not to mention confusion, as Mina sat down beside Lita. Lita responded the way she had responded before when this had happened in the booth. The brunette got up, walked to the other side of the room, and sat down with her back to the small blonde.

Serena could sense the waves of hostility streaming off of her petite friend's frame. She wasn't sure what had happened between the two girls, and had almost been afraid to ask, but it was starting to trouble her, especially this time when the ribbon-wearing blonde gave her a pleading look.

"Should I go outside so that you two can majorly beat the snot out of each other?" Serena asked. Mina, despite being bigger than Lita for the first time since they became Sailor Scouts, appeared alarmed by the suggestion.

"Yes!" Lita squawked. She jumped up and whipped around to face her opponent.

'Well, that's a start. At least, they're looking at each other... sort of.'

"Let's say, I messed up, 'kay?" the Sailor Scout of Venus admitted. "Lita, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"What did you say, Mina?" the meatball-headed blonde questioned.

"She said you would **NOT** want me as _your_ daughter," the ponytailed brunette complained pointing at Mina before she could get a word in.

"Mi-na..."

"Well, I was mad, Serena, I AM mad. I don't wanna be stuck like this and Lita's treating this like a school fieldtrip or something."

"I, unlike you, have confidence in MY teammates AND _MY_ Princess."

"So do I," Mina pouted.

"If you did, blondie, you wouldn't be majorly stressing out over this," Lita nearly snarled.

"Okay, hold it!" Serena commanded, "Timeout!" Both younger girls seemed to sag a little at the stern look from their grownup friend.

"I was the only one who stood up for Serena. Amy didn't, Raye didn't... didn't support her. I did!" Mina's eyes widened. Lita looked as if she was about to cry. "You weren't HERE! You were off somewhere being Sailor V..." the seven year old spat out. "**You were with **_**your**_** parents!**" and then, the little girl broke down into tears.

Mina, completely bewildered by what her friend had been saying, did the only thing her stunned young mind could come up. She walked over and wrapped her arms about Lita in a strong firm hug. The beribboned blonde was surprised when the younger girl responded in kind. She wrapped her arms about her, pressed her face against the orange fabric of her frilly nightgown, and bawled.

Mina looked up worriedly as a shadow came across her vision and she saw Serena beside them. Their leader sank down to the floor and gathered both her small friends into an all-encompassing hug. Lita for her part turned and clung to Serena as if she were a life preserver.

"I don't get it," the Sailor Scout of Venus admitted. "She... I..." The youngster fell silent suddenly aware that if Serena chose at that moment to play parent, there wasn't anything she could do. 'And I don't think I could stop her either.'

"It's sorta like a dam," the rather maternal Serena mused softly, resting her chin atop Lita's head and gently rocking the brunette in a soothing fashion. "It holds stuff back but if it breaks, everything behind it comes rushing out."

Mina drew back, frowned, and then putting her hands on her hips demanded, "Okay, missy, who the heck are you?" She heard Lita give half-hearted giggle.

"Mina," the pigtailed princess chided in a voice that made a shiver rise up Mina's spine, "I'm no good in math, and I'm certainly never gonna to be a majorly famous cook like Lita."

"Got that straight, Mommy," Lita somehow mumbled out and sniffled.

Serena rolled her eyes but ignored the comment by saying, "And I couldn't knit to save my life."

"And what about Raye?" Lita asked, apparently wanting to be fair.

"Well... She can sing," The woman sniffled which made both her friends grin. "But I think I know people, Mina." While the little blonde chewed on that tidbit, Serena pulled Lita away and from somewhere produced a tissue. Pressing it to the seven year old's nose, she commanded, "Blow." Lita giggled but allowed herself to be fussed over.

Of course, Mina wanted in on the act and found that being cuddled was not all that horrible. "So... you forgive me, Sis?" Mina asked.

"I guess I can," the brunette replied.

"And what do you mean by that?!"

Before anyone could say anything, the door sprang to the bedroom open. Both Raye and Amy entered the room, looked around, and seemed about ready to ask something but Mina beat them to it.

"Well?"

"Have you seen Reenie?" Amy asked.

Serena frowned. "No... Why?" 'Wasn't Reenie with them?'

"We sent her to get the jar that Lita brought our share of the cookies in," Raye informed them.

"Why?" The little brunette couldn't figure out why they'd want her old cookie jar. All it had left were some crumbs.

"We bewieve the cookies we ate were infused with some type of magic."

"What about the ones we sold?" Mina asked worriedly. Carrie had eaten some of those cookies! Lita looked horrified.

"They are clean, but when we asked Reenie to retwieve the container, she didn't return."

"How long ago?" asked the oldest of them, worry lines creasing her forty-something face.

"About ten minutes ago."

"We haven't seen her," the ribbon-wearing blonde chimed in.

"I still don't get..." Serena began all the time wondering where her cousin had gone off. 'And exactly WHAT am I going to do when I find her?' the blonde thought as Amy explained more of her reasoning.

- - - - -

Luna Ball nudged its mistress worriedly. The youngster uncurled enough to hug the orb to her chest. Luna Ball, if it had been capable, sighed. It just knew that its mistress was about to do something rash. Sure enough, a small finger sought Luna Ball's nose and depressed it. Inside the floating ball, the magical circuitry for communications flared to life. A short moment later, one of its eyes blanked and staticky snow showed until the small figure of a Sailor Scout appear.

"_Small Lady,_" came out the small voice.

"Puu," its mistress sobbed, "Please, I wanna go home."

"_You must stay with Sailor Moon._"

"But she hates me!" the seven year old cried, anguish apparent. "They _ALL_ hate me!"

"_No,_" came the calm soft voice of Sailor Pluto, "_She loves you... All the Sailor Scouts love you._"

"Not no more..." Reenie sniffled.

The black sphere tried to think itself into invisibility. It had the distinct impression that after everything was said and done, certain royal personages would enjoy using it as target practice.

Several lifetimes away from the spot where the little girl huddled, Sailor Pluto sighed. "_Small Lady, Sailor Moon can protect you, and no matter what you've done, I'm sure she will forgive you._"

"**I want my mommy!**" Reenie cried. No tears came to her aid though; she had cried herself dry. Her big red eyes were hot, sticky, and itchy.

"_You must stay, Princess,_" Pluto insisted and with that, the connection was broken.

Luna Ball might have protested as its mistress flung it aside. It watched, with what to a human would have equated to mounting dismay, as Reenie stood up, fumbled for a moment, and produced her Time Key, the Crystal Key which she hoped would take her home.

Moments later, Reenie Serenity Tsukino, Crown Princess of Crystal Tokyo, crashed to the earth as the Time Gate was dissipated. The force of her fall knocked the air out of her, and the seven year old lay panting on the cold hard ground.

She began to cry, but unlike before, this was a cry of loss, of loneliness. With the tears, her magic released. The dam burst as it did before, shooting a beam of pure, uncontrolled magic into the sky.

- - - - -

"EMERALD!" The shout of her name jerked her into wakefulness. She was startled to find the image of Wiseman before her, regarding her from under his shadowy hood. She would have preferred Prince Diamond have called her. "The Rabbit has sent a signal. Hurry, get her! Get her before the Sailor Scouts interfere!"

For a moment, all the woman could do was gape at the floating apparition and then struggle from her bed. "Of course, Wiseman, at once." Wiseman flickered away and Emerald shivered. Then a feral smile played across her lips. 'Time to go a huntin'!'

- - - - -

"The cwumbs remaining in the container confirm it," Amy announced around a yawn. "They have the same foreign magical signature as I detected in us."

'Damn! So the Negaverse got to the jar...' "But what's this got to do with Reenie?" Serena asked in exasperation. 'I should be out there looking for her!' Raye had argued that Reenie was likely just hiding, which didn't make a lot of sense to the meatball-headed blonde.

"Meatball Head, Reenie put the stuff in there," Raye explained as if to a kindergartner.

"Are you nuts, girlfriend?" Mina asked, "Why would she do that?"

"She's done it before," the shrine maiden pointed out.

"But..." Lita began but paused as Serena drew in a sharp breath.

Serena's head suddenly jerked to the side as she felt a wave of magic. 'Oh my God!' "**REENIE!**" she gasped. There wasn't any doubt about what the source of that magic was. It was too strong, too familiar, like the Imperium Silver Crystal did when it flared.

"Let's transform!" Lita commanded, eyes blazing, "I wanna kick some Negaverse butt." She smacked her tiny fist in her other hand.

"No!"

"But Ser..."

"Lita, please let me and Raye handle this. You, Mina, and Amy stay here as backup. If we need you, we'll come get you, but you STAY put, clear?" Serena commanded firmly.

"Okay..."

"Come on, Raye," Serena ordered and sprinted from the room, gripping her broach as she did so. "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!"

"MARS STAR POWER!" and followed her leader.

- - - - -

Emerald appeared floating above the spot where Wiseman had said the Rabbit would be. There was nothing there, however. Nothing but dark trees and frozen undergrowth.

She snapped her fingers. "Droid Auld Lang Syne come forth!" The Droid materialized beside her mistress. "Find the Rabbit!" Emerald commanded.

- - - - -

"Where is she, Mars?!" Sailor Moon asked worriedly as she and her companion ran down one of the temple's main paths. "Why would she run away?"

"I told you, Sailor Moon," Mars said petulantly, eyes scanning for any sign of the little girl, "She put something in the cookies we ate."

"But why?"

"When we find her, you can ask her that! I certainly intend to!" the red Scout spat. A few minutes later, she froze and turned to her left to face partially back the way they came.

"What is it?" Sailor Moon asked, not sounding nervous, which was a change her friend appreciated.

"There... a Droid or at least something with Negaenergy. It just appeared." The fiery Sailor Scout was startled when her leader charged without hesitation into the trees.

"Moon..."

"I hear her. I hear Reenie!" Sailor Moon shouted over her shoulder.

Even as she strained her ears, Sailor Mars followed her princess. It didn't take long for Sailor Mars to hear a familiar little girl calling for help.

- - - - -

It had only been moments before that the Droid found her quarry. It had been almost too easy, but that didn't stop the Droid.

If anyone had seen her, unlikely given where she was, Emerald's Droid would have looked like an inebriated New Year's Eve celebrant. She wore a disheveled red dress wrapped around a stick-thin frame and the almost traditional large bust the Negaverse tended to favor. A rather lopsided and garish looking party hat sat atop her black and rumpled curls held by a string under her chin. In her left hand, she held a champagne bottle, while a party favor was clutched in the other.

The Droid stumbled towards her unsuspecting victim, apparently due to the missing high heel shoe that should have been on her right foot, but it was all part of the act.

Closer she came eagerly anticipating the rewards she would reap for capturing the Rabbit. She gave a goofy grin at Reenie AKA the Rabbit AKA hunted enemy of the Negaverse when she regarded the child through the gloom. A moment later, the little girl spotted the predator and quickly pushed herself up and began to retreat.

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" the Droid snarled and raised the party favor to her mouth. In the blink of an eye, it unrolled as she blew into it, stretching, lengthening far beyond that of a normal party favor. She felt herself smile. The little girl was running away. It wanted to play.

The Rabbit would not get away though. The Droid was going to make sure of that. Her party favor wrapped itself about the youngster's ankle and started puling its victim backwards.

"Don't run away, little Rabbit," she cooed, "The party's just getting star..."

The Droid was cut off by a shout coming from behind and to her right. An instant later, a bolt of fire severed the party favor releasing its prey. A handful of heartbeats later, Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars rushed onto the scene. Without preamble, Moon scooped her target up off the ground and started to move away.

"TIME TO PAY THE BAR TAB!" the Droid shouted, lifted the bottle to her lips, and drank deeply. The bubbly liquid swelled its cheeks. A moment later, it lowered the bottle and spewed forth a cone of black broiling flame.

Sailor Moon launched herself, and a clinging and crying Reenie, straight into the air while Sailor Mars dodged.

- - - - -

Sailor Mars growled as the black flame nearly clipped her. "BURNING MANDALA!" Mars shouted, aiming fire rings at the Droid who almost immediately countered with her own spewing flame. The Fire Scout rolled again and was distressed to notice that one of the trees was consumed.

"You'll pay for that, bitch!" the raven-haired Scout shouted, eyes becoming flinty.

"OH PUT A CORK IN IT, _LITTLE GIRL_!" the Droid shouted. Sailor Mars watched with stupid fascination as a massive champagne cork came hurtling towards her out of nowhere.

- - - - -

As Mars distracted the enemy, Sailor Moon got its target to safety behind a large tree. "Sailor Moon," the pink-haired seven year old in her arms gasped in shock.

The Sailor Scout of the Moon looked down at her little cousin and sighed internally. "Reenie, are you okay?" Reenie nodded. "Fine. You stay out of sight behind this tree. I need to go and help."

"But..."

"Stay right here," the woman repeated firmly. "I want you to promise me that, Reenie." When the youngster nodded, Sailor Moon patted the girl on the head and then leapt up into the branches of the tree. She was just in time to see her comrade knocked backwards by a massive cork.

"**STOP RIGHT THERE!**" Sailor Moon shouted. She jumped down to the ground to confront this vile caricature of a jovial New Year's partygoer. "THIS IS THE FIRST DAY OF A NEW YEAR AND IT'S MEANT TO HERALD A NEW BEGINNING!" In a part of her mind, Sailor Moon wondered why the enemy always allowed her to finish her speeches, but it was a very small part of her mind. "AND TO BEGIN THE NEW YEAR RIGHT, IN THE NAME OF THE MOON, I WILL PUNISH YOU!"

Droid Auld Lang Syne gave her a sickly smile, reached up, and took its party hat off. "I take my hat off to you, Sailor _wench_. Let's have a blast!" And with a cackle befitting an evil movie monster, the Droid flung her hat into the sky. It tumbled repeatedly and then as it reached the top of its arc, little bits of confetti started pouring from it.

Sailor Moon watched in puzzlement as the little bits floated down. Her confusion didn't last long as the confetti started to explode about her.

She dove to the ground as she heard Sailor Mars shout, "MARS FIRE IGNITE!" The fireball ripped through the air above Sailor Moon and instantly incinerated the explosive bits of paper.

"Last call!" Droid Auld Lang Syne called out, drank deeply from her bottle and spewed fire once more.

"**SAILOR MOON!!**" Mars shouted in warning but it was too late. The fire rolled over the prone Sailor Scout.

"**NO!**" Reenie shouted horrified, but her horror vanished into relief when Sailor Moon climbed to her feet after the wave of fire passed. The Sailor Scout of the Moon looked a little singed but otherwise uninjured.

"Are you all right?" Mars asked.

"I was just getting warmed up," Sailor Moon replied.

"Man, you're starting to sound like Venus now," Mars groaned and then focused her attention back to the Droid. "Get ready!"

"Right!" Moon shouted back, preparing to move. A hail of fire rings shot towards the Droid who tried to counter but it was too much, she was staggered backwards, tripped, and fell heavily.

"N..." Mars began but the Droid wasn't going home just yet.

"HIGH HEEL FLING!" Droid Auld Lang Syne shouted. She tossed her left heel at Sailor Mars who almost dodged it. However, the spiked heel caught part of her uniform and pinned her to tree. "Don't run off..."

What happened next would live in Red Scout's memory for the rest of her life for it was a scene that showed what Sailor Moon would become. What her princess summoned looked more like a staff than anything else and try as she might, Sailor Mars was never able quite to remember the words Sailor Moon used.

A great magical surge of energy flowed like a tsunami from Sailor Moon towards the Droid. Droid Auld Lang Syne vanished screaming under the power of an adult Sailor Moon determined to protect the ones she loved.

End of Chapter 6

Coming next in** Chapter 7 - Revelations**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	7. Chapter 7 Revelations

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 7 - Revelations**

"**W**e should've gone with them," Mina Aino grumbled as she stared at the closed door her friends had just exited through. Lita shrugged. Amy levered herself up and toddled over to the bed. The ribbon-wearing blonde watched as the youngster climbed onto Raye's bed with difficulty, turned, and sat down.

"Serena told us to stay," the blue-haired child pointed out, almost sadly.

"You okay, Ames?" Lita asked.

Mina stared as a tiny lower lip quivered even as its owner nodded. "Don't cry, Amy... They'll be fine, just like always."

"B-but... what about us?!" the preschooler questioned, throwing her hands up in complete desolation. Tears welled up into her eyes and rolled down her cheeks in two glistening streams. "A-ah..." Her tone became throaty and she snuffled. "And..."

"And what?" Lita asked, alarmed by her normally stoic friend's tears.

"You won't be my fwiend anymore! You'll be in school and I..." the toddler blubbered. The brunette was stunned; she simply stared at her regressed friend. Mina, on the other hand, walked over to sit on the bed beside Amy. She lifted the small child carefully into her lap and hugged her tightly.

"That's just silly, Amy. We'll _never_ stop being your friends," the blonde assured her soothingly, "Right, Lita?"

"Buh..." Amy started to protest but couldn't get anymore out.

"Mina's right, Amy. We care about you," Lita chimed in. She came over to the bed and sat down too. She hugged both of her friends and smiled as Amy smiled slightly. "And you better not let Serena hear you talk like that or she'll get really ticked."

"Yeah," Mina agreed and then seconded, "Come on, Amy, don't cry please. If Serena comes in here and sees you in tears, she'll string me up by my ribbon!" 'She might even spank me!'

"Whoa, girl, how do you figure that?" the brunette asked.

"I'm the oldest one here. She'd hold me responsible."

"You didn't seem so worried before, SIS," Lita remarked a little sarcastically and grinned as her blond friend stuck her tongue out for a moment.

"Yeah well, that was BEFORE I realized how BIG Serena is now. All kidding aside, you guys think my 'rents are really soft on me but I was the world's leading authority on corner-time when I was little." She was glad to hear Amy giggle.

"You know, Ames," the brunette observed after a moment, "You are being a little silly."

"How come?" the blue-haired child asked around a hiccup.

"Well, think about it. You can transform... That means you're a Sailor Scout. How many _kids_ can say that?"

"My LITTLE sis is right. You ARE a Sailor Scout, and unless something wonky happened to the rest of us, we're Scouts too. Sure, our power levels are off but we're a team and don't you think that if we've got weaker, Serena hasn't got stronger."

"OH!" Amy gasped and then wiggled out of the little blonde's lap. "I fowgot!" she exclaimed, slapping one hand to her forehead.

"What?" the two older girls asked.

"Our enagy... Mina chawnge!"

"Huh?"

"Just hurwy up and do it!" Amy demanded. Lita stared as Amy produced her transformation pen and looked with annoyance at Mina who was still sitting on the bed. Mina regarded Lita who shrugged. The little blonde shrugged before producing her own transformation pen.

"VENUS STAR POWER!" Mina cried and a moment later, Sailor Venus was sitting on Raye's bed. Amy had transformed as well. Now a diminutive Sailor Mercury was using her VR visor and muttering to herself. "What's her problem?" Venus asked.

"How am I supposed to know? You're the oldest." Venus stuck her tongue out but both were distracted when Mercury gave a cry of delight.

"WHAT?!" both girls demanded.

"Our le'els are the same!"

"You mean I'm gonna be stuck with your power levels?" Lita tried hard not to sound too disappointed about becoming so weak.

"NO!" Mercury squawked shaking her hand so hard she nearly spun herself around, "They're the same as they were when we were... teens."

"Is that good or bad?" Venus wondered tapping her tip and then added, "'Though for my money, I'd say it was good."

"Yeah, I can beat up NEGASCUM too!" Mercury replied jubilantly. 'I'm not a baby!'

"Uh... I don't know..."

"Aren't we a Gloomy-Gus? How can it not be good?"

"Venus," Lita began with a sigh, "Magically, we're the same but can these kid bodies handle that much power? It'd be like putting twenty-millimeter cannons on a tricycle. The kick from it might splatter us into greasy gobs of gopher guts."

"Eew!"

"Come on," the Blue Scout demanded while heading for the door.

"Where ya going?" Lita asked.

"I should take measurements and compare Sailor Moon's power le'els and ours..." Sailor Mercury sighed. 'It's better than sitting around here sulking.' "We can measure Mars' levels too to see if it'll cause overpwessure."

"What about Grandpa Hino?" Sailor Venus worried.

"He's sweeping in another building... You know the one he was going to wun exercise classes in? Raye said he didn't want to hear a quote 'bunch of teenage girls giggling all night' unquote," Mercury lisped then giggled. 'At least without him joining in.'

"Am-Mercury, if you want a reading, you can just ask Serena to transform when she gets back," the ponytailed brunette suggested.

"Chicken?" the Orange Scout suggested, although her tone showed she was teasing.

"Listen, Serena was pretty firm," Lita countered, "And I don't know about you two, but I think she's lost all patience. Frankly, it gives me the willies." 'Amy's right. Serena is REALLY big now.'

"But we have a duty. We're Sailor Scouts!" Mercury protested. "Now hurwy up and change, Lita!"

- - - - -

Sailor Moon looked around carefully. Satisfied that there were no more enemies, she walked over to Sailor Mars, who was still lying on the ground a little dazed, and held a hand out. "You all right, Mars?"

"Yeah..." Mars replied and allowed her friend to help her up, "It just took me by surprise."

"Are they gone?"

Sailor Mars blinked. It wasn't like Sailor Moon to be this cautious. She frowned, calmed herself, and then concentrated trying to feel any telltale signs of Negaenergy in the area. She couldn't sense anything. "I think they are. Your power levels are up."

"I s'ppose..." Sailor Moon sounded a little sour about it. The leader of the Sailor Scouts shook her head and gave her preteen colleague a lopsided grin. "It was way easier to focus... I think it'll take me a little while to adjust."

"Are you really okay, Sailor Moon?" the Red Scout asked her eyes widening slightly in concern.

"Yeah, it was kind of a shock that's all." Sighing, Sailor Moon reversed her transformation and walked towards Reenie who was peeking discreetly around the large tree where she had been placed. Sailor Mars reverted to her civilian identity as well. When Serena got to the pink-haired girl, she put her hands on her hips and looked down at the youngster. "Well?"

"Well what?" Reenie asked, trying hard to sound as innocent as possible.

"I thought you were supposed to be helping Amy and Raye, young lady?"

"I was..." Reenie replied and then squirmed under the stern gaze Serena was giving her. It was like her mother did when she thought Reenie was being especially naughty. The seven year old gulped as her "cousin" crossed her arms and started tapping her left foot.

"So what's your butt doing out here?"

"Being attacked by the Negaverse?" the little girl offered in a helpful tone. She wanted to add "_Meatball Head_" but it just wouldn't come out.

"I see someone wants a spanking," the very tall and much older Serena Tsukino remarked in a disapproving tone.

"I'm too cute to spank!" the pink-haired girl chirped with what little emotional resolve she had left and then stiffened, almost certain that Serena would explode at that point.

After an interminable pause of maybe five or six seconds, the pigtailed blonde before her snorted and shook her head. "You are, huh?" The seven year old decided to keep her lips pressed together. Serena gave another snort of what was apparently suppressed mirth and knelt down. "Okay, Miss Reenie Serenity, what got you out here in the middle of the night?"

The little girl felt her eyes starting to fill with unwanted tears again and she blinked rapidly before mumbling out, "I wanna go home."

"And that ain't back to my mom's I assume?" Reenie shook her head and stared dejectedly at the ground. "And why do you wanna go home right now?"

"'Cause I just knew you were gonna hate me!" the little girl almost shouted. She tried hard not to burst into tears and jump into her cousin's arms. Her breath quickened and she screwed up her face in despair. "Nobody likes me here! I wanna go home to Mommy and Daddy!"

Serena rocked backwards and stared at the child before her. "Why on earth," she asked in tones of disbelief, "Would I hate you?"

"'Cause... 'Cause..." the pink-haired youngster sniffled, "You're gonna be mad at me..." She glanced at Raye and then back at Serena.

"I am?" She looked back towards Raye who appeared rather grim. The raven-haired girl nodded and pointed at herself and then Serena and then Luna Ball who was floating patiently at its owner's side.

Now Serena Tsukino was not known for being a quick thinker, but she didn't need to be a super genius like Amy to understand what her preteen friend was implying. She slowly turned back to the seven year old who was looking very miserable and then flicked her eyes to Luna Ball. The floating orb sunk towards the ground and slid silently behind Reenie as if trying to find a place to hide.

The _former_ petite teen felt her anger growing into a surging tsunami. She opened her mouth and then paused. 'That's it!' Serena thought, 'That is really it!' She took a few seconds to get her temper under control but even as she beat it back, she saw that Reenie was staring at her, waiting for what she thought (almost hoped) would be an explosion of biblical proportions. 'This type of STUPID thing ends NOW!' Serena decided firmly. She paused for a heartbeat and then smiled mentally. "Young lady!" she began without raising her voice but putting as much disapproval into it as she could.

Reenie cringed and blurted out, "I didn't mean to! Honest!"

"Didn't mean to do what?" came a new voice. Reenie, Raye, and Serena whipped around to see Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Venus, and Sailor Mercury enter the clearing.

Serena rose and placed her hands on her hips. "Just what do you think you three are doing?"

"We're Sailor Scouts," Mercury announced, "We came to help!" She looked around and then asked almost plaintively, "It's over?"

"Very," Raye commented dryly.

"Aww nuts!" Sailor Mercury replied, "I want to do a scan of Sewena's power levels."

Said blonde's nostrils flared and she regarded the three young newcomers. "Did I or did I not tell you three to stay there and that we would call you if we needed you?"

"Well yeah," Venus answered, smiling cutely.

"So did I call you?"

"No, Serena..." Venus said again and glanced at Jupiter.

"Did Raye?"

"Mommy, it doesn't..." Jupiter began but trailed off as the leader of the Sailor Scouts crossed her arms and gave them a very repressive look. "Uh... We just thought..." she trailed off again and glanced at Reenie who looked miserable. 'Oh boy!'

"Young ladies, at our next Scout meeting," Serena began in a quiet yet authoritative voice, "We're gonna discuss why it is not a majorly good idea to usurp your leader's prerogatives."

"Whoa. Just chill out a little, Princess," Jupiter chimed in, her missing front tooth showing, "We're not tryin' to take over."

"Then why are you here?" Serena asked in a conversational tone but there was definite disapproval in it.

"Um..." Sailor Venus glanced towards Jupiter and then Mercury and then fell silent and shifted from foot to foot.

"As I said, we'll discuss this at our next Scout meeting, for now..." She uncrossed her arms and pointed at Venus. "You and you..." She pointed at Mercury who took on a look of angelic innocence. "And you..." Serena finished by pointing at Jupiter. "Are goin' back to the temple now." She gave the seven year old with the ponytail a stern look. "I might not be able to really handle Venus and Mercury but since you've done me the honor of calling me '_Mommy_' and I'm the Moon Princess, I'm gonna accept the responsibility." Jupiter beamed. "So after we get back and after I sort out Reenie..." The pink-haired girl winced. "I'm gonna have a long talk with you, Little Miss Jupiter." The smile on the Jovian Scout's face immediately faded away leaving her looking more than a little anxious. "Now, everyone transform back and go back to Raye's room," and in a softer voice, "And pray to the Kamis, that Grandpa Hino and Chad aren't out and about."

- - - - -

The tension in Raye Hino's bedroom was so thick it was almost palpable. Serena sat on a cushion beside a low table, her forty-something face looking very disapproving at the array of children around her. Raye sat beside Serena, face blank, but eyes flashing in anger. Mina sat towards the door, eyes darting nervously between Serena and the pink-haired youngster who also sat at the table, head bowed. Amy for her part had settled onto Mina's lap and stuck her thumb unknowingly into her mouth. The ribbon-wearing blonde might have mentioned the odd behavior but didn't dare given the current climate of the room. Instead, she put one arm loosely around Amy's midsection. Lita sat quietly behind Serena, as if attempting to go unnoticed.

"Young lady," Serena injected into the heavy silence, "We have been waiting here five minutes for you to tell us what this is all about."

Reenie hunched her shoulders and sniffled. After another couple of seconds, she lifted her head enough to say, "It was an accident." As the seconds dragged by, it became apparent that that was all the little girl was willing to say.

"Reenie, look at me," Serena ordered and waited until the girl had lifted her head enough to look her directly in the eye, "Now... you seem to think that not telling me is going to keep you from being punished."

"You're gonna do it anyway," the seven year old whined, "**EVERYBODY**** hates me!**" Her eyes swept the room searching faces before settling back on her hands in her lap.

"Reenie," the middle-aged woman said in the softest possible voice her current emotional state would allow, "Are we gonna be upset with you? Yes... Are we gonna be mad about what you've done? Yes. We are _NOT_ gonna HATE you. I won't speak for the others but I still love you, no matter how exasperating you can be."

"She's right," Raye unexpectedly seconded, "I'm not real happy about what I think happened but I certainly don't hate you." She glanced at Serena and despite herself grinned slightly. "I think Serena said it best." 'Although...' The twelve year old started to think and then mentally shook it off. 'I hope this feeling goes away.' At the moment, all she wanted was for Serena to hug her and tell her everything would work out, while at the same time she thought she'd die if the blonde woman did any such thing.

"So come on, tell us," Mina put in. Amy nodded.

"Well... W-when I was at Lita's..." Reenie paused swallowed hard and blinked. She was out of tears but desperately wanted to cry. It seemed to be the best thing to do under the circumstances. "I-I had Luna Ball put some stuff in the batter."

Lita popped up from behind Serena like a jack-in-the-box and glowered at the larger girl. "Excuse me?" When the object of her question didn't respond, Lita stood up and came around Serena. "You put SOMETHING in **MY** cookies?!" Reenie leaned away from the former tall teen, her breathing coming more shallowly. "WELL?!" Lita demanded when the girl didn't respond.

"ITWASANACCIDENT! **ITWASANACCIDENT!**" Reenie cried, shuffling backwards as if fearing the fuming second-grader might attack.

"Lita..." Serena warned softly.

"But Serena...!" Lita started to complain as she turned to face the woman but abruptly fell silent at the look the meatball-headed blonde was giving her. "Why can't I be mad too? She rags on my family and ruins something that I take a lot of pride in. Nobody's gonna eat my cooking again without wondering what might've been put in it."

"You can be upset, Lita. I majorly am... and Reenie is gonna have to face the consequences for doing what she did. But yelling at her now won't do anything but make YOU feel better for a while and no matter what Reenie did, I won't let that happen." Blue eyes held both seven year olds silently. When Lita lowered her gaze and seemed to relax slightly, Serena turned back to her little cousin. "Reenie, fibbing ain't gonna get you out of trouble. It'll only make things worse."

"But I'm not fibbin'!" the seven year old protested.

"You have to be," Mina protested right back, "You said you used Luna Ball to put something into the cookie dough, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Then HOW," Lita demanded angrily after turning back to Reenie, "Can this be an accident?!"

"Lita, sit."

"NO!" Lita shouted up at Serena, "I listened to her rag on you this morning and tried hard to make her feel better." Her lips curled in disgust as she continued, "And what does she do to thank me... She sabotages **MY** cookies!"

"I didn't mean..." the pink-haired girl began trying hard to think of a way to explain, "Serena was treating me like a baby." She was visibly shaking. "I had to do something to make her not do that!"

"Reenie, I trusted you... **KAMI KNOWS I TRIED TO BE YOUR FRIEND** AND YOU... And you..." Lita shouted then trailed off. The pink-haired youngster stared wide-eyed breathing in quick hard breaths as her heart hammered against her chest. She'd never seen a look so pained and near hopeless in her young life as the one Lita Kino was giving her now. Tears began to form as Lita rasped out, "Don't you care about anyone but yourself?"

"LITA!" The name was spoken with commanding disapproval. "SIT!" The youngster sat heavily. Her burning green eyes looked away as tears flowed down her young cheeks. Satisfied that she had gained control, Serena got up, walked over to Reenie, and knelt beside her. "Reenie," she began gently, cupping Reenie's face gently between her hands, "Sweetheart, take a deep breath." What had she done? Reenie simply stared, pushing her breaths in hard shallow gasps, and trying hard to get tears to come to relieve the burning shame that she felt boiling inside her. "Come on, you don't wanna be sick... Now big breath."

The pink-haired seven year old did as she was told taking in a shuddering breath as much as she could, but it came out in a rush. "Now another, sweetheart, and hold it for a while this time." That request was a bit harder but after a coupled of tries, Reenie managed it. It took about two minutes for Reenie to calm enough to satisfy the adult. The woman was about to draw away when a knock came at the door.

Everyone quickly regarded each other and then Raye rose and crossed to the door. She carefully opened it shielding the girls from his view as she poked her head out. "Raye, is everything okay?" came the voice of Grandpa Hino, "I thought I heard shouting... I figured it was a movie or something but you don't have a TV in your room."

"Sorry, Grandpa," Raye answered in a natural voice, "Reenie had a nightmare." She noticed that the old priest looked a little taller than he normally did.

"Oh, is she okay?"

Raye glanced over her shoulder, noted that Reenie was looking calmer if not exactly less gloomy, and turned back to her grandfather. "Yeah... Did you hear it all the way out to where you were sleeping?"

"No, I came inside for a snack before bed." He grinned. "I'm older than Chad but by the Kamis, he's sleeping so soundly that an oni banging a drum next to him wouldn't wake him." He shrugged and grinned, "Well, goodnight, girls. I know it was an exciting evening but try to get some sleep. We'll need our strength to clean up the temple grounds tomorrow."

"I don't think we'll be long for bed, Grandpa," his now preteen granddaughter replied. She watched as the old man nodded and then stepped back so she could close the bedroom door.

"Sorry, Raye," the teary-eyed Lita mumbled, "I shouldn't've lost my temper."

"That's all right," the priestess replied, "We've all had long days."

"Well before Miss Reenie Serenity here goes to bed, I'd like to know exactly what she put into the cookie batter," Serena declared firmly.

"I got Luna Ball to put something in so you'd..." Here the pink-haired girl paused, squirmed, and then embarrassedly went on, "So you guys would have fun."

"Because you thought Serena and EVERYBODY else was going to be an ol' stick-'n-the-sand?" Mina questioned and thought, 'I wouldn't have been one... I had a cute guy all scoped out and everything!'

Reenie blushed and regarded Serena nervously who only looked expectantly back. Her blush deepened and she nearly whispered, "Well, Serena IS usually a stick-in-the-mud." Serena looked sharply at Lita. However, it was Amy who had giggled; Lita wasn't brave enough at that particular moment. Apparently sensing that a change of subject was required immediately, the seven year old amended quickly, "I didn't mean to do that," she tried to explain, gesturing towards Amy and Mina, "I just meant for everybody to have fun. I didn't know... I didn't know..."

"You mean that you DIDN'T intend for our ages to change but us to... _have fun_ by altering our personalities to a prepubescent state," Amy deduced and the pink-haired youngster nodded. That sounded right.

"So what went wrong?" Lita asked coldly. Reenie shrugged.

"Well, you've gotten us into a fine pickle..." Serena sighed, "What am I going to do with you?"

"That's easy," Raye suddenly commented from her position near the door. The others turned to stare at the preteen. "She needs a spanking right here in front of everybody." Reenie winced.

"Yeah!" Mina piped up, "Do you know how much trouble this going to cause us?"

"That's right!" Lita agreed, "If I did something anywhere close to this, my mom would've spanked my sorry little butt."

"Oh really..." Serena said speculatively. She arched an eyebrow when Lita gave her a worried look. After another moment, Serena shook her head, "No." Raye and Mina stared at her as if they were going to protest. Reenie gaped at the blond woman who had once been her ditzy teenaged cousin.

"What do you mean '_no_'?" Raye demanded. "Are you saying that she shouldn't be punished after what she did?"

"I didn't say that either," Serena told them.

"Well then, woman, haul her over your knee and get to it!" the raven-haired shrine maiden demanded.

Serena shook her head again. "I'm not going to, at least not now." She rubbed her forehead and sighed. "I really need to think about this."

"Pardon me but there isn't THAT much to think about," Lita countered.

"I'm not handing out any punishments... now," Serena indicated firmly before explaining to Reenie directly, "Not because I don't think you deserve a sound spanking, young lady... but because I don't... I won't believe you wanted to harm us." The pink-haired girl nodded rapidly. "What's done is done and all of us are gonna have to figure out a way to live with it for a long time to come. That doesn't mean you're gonna get away Scot-free." She considered, "For now, where's your sleeping bag?"

"There," the youngster indicated pointing to where it had been put.

"Well, you can park your butt in it for the rest of the night," Serena commanded. "It doesn't move until morning. **Clear?**"

"Yes, Se-Serena," was the whisper.

The matron nodded then. "If I had any way of pulling it off, I'd call Mom and have her come and get you." Reenie audibly gulped. "Since I don't..."

"You could use the Disguise Pen," Lita interrupted. "Call your mom and get Reenie out of here." She gulped at the disapproving look being given her.

"It's temping but..." Serena glanced at her watch. "It's majorly late. Mom's likely in bed. And no matter how I'd spin it, she'd likely not thank me for waking her up." She turned and gave Reenie a long look, which turned into a glare. It was so intense that Reenie squirmed. "And I don't trust Reenie not to use Luna Ball to do something with my mom's head to wiggle out of trouble." The Princess from the future's eyes expanded and she stared at the adult in horror. "No, I think I'll just keep her where we can keep an eye on her." Several seconds of heavy silence followed. "Well go on, get to bed." As Reenie was pushing herself up so she could go to bed, Serena turned to the others. "Raye, Mina, Amy, can you go to the kitchen? We should maybe think about what we're gonna do tomorrow when it's time to go home."

"What about me?!" Lita asked. She agreed that sounded like a good idea, why she wasn't being included?

Serena frowned. "After I get Reenie settled, you and I are going to have a _MOTHER-DAUGHTER_ talk about you showing up when I told you to stay put. After we're done, we'll join the other girls."

'Crud...' Lita thought with a mental wince but had to fight to suppress a smile. After all it wouldn't do to smile when your potential parent was about to lower the boom.

End of Chapter 7

Coming next in**Chapter 8 - Hope for the Dawn**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	8. Chapter 8 Hope for the Dawn

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 8 - Hope for the Dawn**

"**I**s she asleep?" Raye asked softly. She, Mina, and Amy were waiting around the kitchen table in the private quarters of the Cherry Hill Temple for Lita and Serena to arrive.

Mina glanced down at the former teen now toddler sitting in her lap, took a sip from a cup of orange juice, and then looked back at the raven-haired preteen. "Probably." She yawned herself and grinned. "I wish those two would hurry up and get here. I wanna sleep myself... if I can." Amy seemed to have figured out a way to sleep despite all of the excitement. "What do you think they're doing, Raye?"

"You really wanna know?" Raye asked, one eyebrow cocked. When her petite blonde friend nodded, the priestess went on casually, "Oh... I think Serena is making a point."

"About what?"

"About the fact that she's in charge and breaking rules could be shall we say _painful_." She tried not to smile at the wide-eyed look Mina was giving her. 'Serena's controlling her temper so I'm sure she won't do anything too heavy-handed. Of course, Lita did pick a bad time to test her limits.'

Amy gave a snort, jerked into an upright position from her slump and looked around. "Is Sewena he'e?"

"Sure am!" came a new voice as Serena came into the room with little Lita trailing behind her.

Amy slid from the chair and ran over while holding up her arms. The middle-aged woman chuckled and bent to scoop the toddler up. "Oh, you're SO huggable," Serena cooed while hugging Amy to her bosom.

The toddler snuggled closer, giggling until a yawn interrupted it. "I like hugs," the little girl confessed with a grin and then asked more seriously, "Am I really huggable?" She never really considered herself cute even when she was small.

"You are so huggable, I might hug the poop right out of you," the pigtailed blonde remarked. Mina made a face but Raye snickered.

"Now you sound like my mo-grandpa," Raye commented as Serena sat down, adjusting Amy so the youngster was facing the other two.

"Yeah, yeah... okay," Mina remarked and watched intently as she drank more of her juice as Lita hopped up and gingerly settled herself into a chair. The beribboned blonde decided that asking wouldn't be good. Instead, she inquired, "So when's our next Scout meeting?"

"Next week I suppose... After we leave tomorrow, we'll need to figure out some other non-Scout stuff first."

"I think my situation will be the easiest," the raven-haired preteen admitted, "Grandpa doesn't seem to have a clue that I've changed. Things might be a little harder to hide at school..." She frowned for a moment and then shrugged. "Really, I'm pretty sure I haven't changed enough that it'll make a really big deal." 'It's just back to training bras for a while.'

"Which raises a question," Lita commented.

"What?" Amy prompted.

The brunette shrugged. "Nothing too important I guess. I was just wondering why our ages vary so much? I mean shouldn't we all be the same age right now?" The blue-haired toddler look thoughtful as Lita continued, "I can see why I was first... I snuck a couple cookies before I came over."

"That's a good point," Raye interjected with a frown, "Would quantity have anything to do with it, Amy?" The young genius didn't answer. Her half-lidded eyes were staring at the light hanging over the table. "Amy?"

"Wha... What?" Amy asked blinking and looking mildly confused as she stared at the faces regarding her.

"Would quantities of whatever Reenie added make a difference in what our ages turned out to be?"

The preschooler frowned but after a few seconds nodded. "Quite possible. Let's find out... How many did you have, Waye?"

"Me?" Raye considered. "Most of one and part of another." Seeing the sad look her ponytailed friend was giving her, she amended quickly, "I was nervous, Lita. I was stressing about things going well..." 'Seems pretty stupid now.' "Your cookies were excellent."

"Thanks Raye," Lita replied with a grin then she frowned, "Well... I had four, no five." She tapped her lip and then added, "Like I said I snuck a couple of those at home so that explains why I started my change earlier than you guys."

"That is logical," Amy stated. "Mina?"

"Um, three or four... I'm not real sure." The little blonde shrugged. "But it'd be less than Lita, right?"

"Unless things weren't mixed evenly," the brunette speculated.

"I don't think so... I know I ate seven."

"**Amy Anderson!**" Serena exclaimed while Raye, Lita, and Mina gaped in disbelief at their friend. "I thought I was the only _cookie monster_ around here."

"I was hungwy... I didn't have any supper," Amy explained while blushing.

"Okay, Ms. Cookie Monster," Raye drawled with a teasing note, "How many did you have?"

Serena tried to look offended but the grin pulling at her mouth betrayed her. "A bunch... To be honest, I don't really know an exact number but I ate whatever ones were left in the jar. They were really really good cookies, Lita." The others nodded and Lita smiled with pleasure.

"Well, it makes sense..." Amy shrugged.

"It does? Then how's come Serena got so lucky?" Mina wondered, bottom lip jutting out in a pout that made her look rather cute. "I mean she can do all sort of stuff now and not get ragged on by her 'rents."

"Don't think it's all gravy, Mina," Serena argued. "Yeah, I'm seen as an adult now but I'm not silly enough to think that." She shook her head slowly. "Nope, I have to think about a job and where I'll live, paying bills, and everything like that. Plus there's going to be some sticky issues about where thirty years of my life went. I can't live with my parents and annoy Sammy and..." 'Why couldn't I have been twenty-one?'

"Well, you can stay at my place," Lita offered, "It's all paid for."

"Won't that change with you... I mean..." Serena waved at Lita's new body.

The ponytailed brunette shook her head. "Nope. My aunt is trustee. She makes sure my bills are paid and I have enough money to spend on food and stuff..." Lita shrugged. "She's never had much to do with us. She doesn't see me, doesn't WANT to 'cept when it's absolutely necessary. I get whatever's left of my parents' estate when I'm twenty-one so we have lots of time." She shrugged. "But that doesn't answer Mina's question. I mean... well... Shouldn't Serena be a newborn right now?" She giggled. "Sorry."

"Yes," Amy commented and then shrugged, "Possibly due to the extweme dosage of the wegressing agent had a counter effect." The toddler tapped her lip and then shrugged again. "I can't think of a better way to exp'ain we'll y..." She yawned and closed her eyes.

"So we sorta know why we're different ages but that doesn't help with what we're going to do tomorrow."

"I think you're right, Raye," the eight year old blonde agreed. "I wanna be with my parents but that'll be a sticky wombat." She jumped up on the table and struck a pose. "Not to mention that everybody knows that Mina Aino is a SEXY young woman. Plus there's my Sailor V and volleyball stuff. Like I said, a lot of people who know I'm a teenager." At Raye and Serena's glare, she hopped off.

"I know," the preschooler chimed in. "While I assume Reenie's using Luna Ball to make adjustments to our family and friends is possible, I don't know how long the effect would wast... Not to mention what will we all do when Reenie goes home to the future?"

The Sailor Scout of Venus scowled as she announced, "Sorry, girlfriends, I don't want that thing anywhere near my 'rents. I don't trust her." Her scowl deepened, she put her hands on her hips, and gave her princess a hard look. "I can't believe you _wussed_ out on punishing the little pink brat."

Serena opened her mouth to protest but Raye interposed herself. "I don't think she did."

Mina gave the priestess a puzzled look. "Excuse me? You were just as loud in calling for Reenie's pigtails as I was, fire breath."

"I know, but I thought about it and what Serena did actually made some sense."

"Huh? How do you figure that, Raye?" Mina asked before draining the rest of her orange juice. Amy squirmed off of Serena's lap and vanished under the table but no one noticed.

"Look, I'm not saying I'm not gonna push for something more than her being grounded tomorrow after I've had some sleep and can think past our immediate needs. But I can see Serena's point. The kid was expecting Serena to drop a planet on her head." The preteen shook her head and smiled slightly. "I know I'd be thinking that if I was in Reenie's shoes." 'And much younger, and I would be.' "The fact that Serena didn't will make what she DOES do later more effective."

"Exactwy. Quality over quantity," Amy seconded from under the table. The others blinked and then pushed back to stare at the toddler. She wiggled to get more comfortable and then sighed. "I'm in a lot worse position than Mina."

"Sweetie," Serena asked gently, "What are you doing under there?"

"Explowing a cave," the toddler answered seriously.

"Yeah... okay," the eight year old blonde said dryly, "So why do you figure you're worse off than me? I mean my parents might actually like me being a kid again. They'd be thrilled to make sure my grades improve this time around." 'And what about the hunks?'

"Mina, it's not that. I'm only thwee. Even the brightest thwee year old is going to be under close supervision. I can pwobably contribute to scientific wesearch but getting that information and being informed about what's happening on the Sailor Scout enviwonment is going to be twicky. I love my mom and I'll likely stay with her. But the fact is Mother was busy even when I was little and with her being older this time around and having more 'sponsibility now..." The little girl shrugged. "My adjustment factor is going to be hardest." She considered, "I either act dumb, and I don't think I could do that long or I'm a super-prodigy and I'll be under a microscope twenty-four/seven. Not good." She swiveled about to regard Serena. "You know, Sewena, you and Lita have the best options. Lita can't live alone anymore at seven but even if her being your dawter doesn't realistically work out, there's a lot more options available to you than either Mina or I." Amy tapped her lip. "My minicomputer can hack into the necessawy government mainframes to acquire documents so we're covered that way... We just need to determine which ones we need."

"You're right... which just makes figuring out what we're going to do, and how Reenie eventually leaving will impact us. Not to mention how the new Sailor Scouts are gonna handle future Negaverse attacks." Serena paused and then looked under the table. "You okay?" she asked Amy who slowly shook her head, "What's wrong?"

"Sowry, Sewena, my bwain's all mushy..." Amy complained and then asked plaintively, "Can I go to bed?"

"Yeah, we can hammer out what to do tomorrow," the middle-aged woman agreed. "Come on." She held out her arms. The toddler crawled from under the table and held her arms up so Serena could pick her up. When she did so, Amy rested her head on Serena's shoulder and closed her eyes. "Anybody else for bed?"

"No," Mina replied, "I'm thirsty."

"Still?" Serena asked, "You just had some OJ."

The little blonde shrugged and then shot a look towards Raye who waved her towards the refrigerator. Mina grinned, got up, went over, and pulled the door open. "What about you, _little sis_?"

"I'm good, _big sis_," Lita replied and then yawned. She grinned. "Really..." Another yawn but Serena didn't say anything.

"I'm gonna make a quick snack. I haven't eaten anything all night," Raye commented. She seemed disgustingly alert to Serena who really did want to crawl under the covers.

"In that case, I'll be back in a couple minutes." Turning, the pigtailed woman walked towards the door. She had crossed the threshold when she heard Mina give a squeal of delight. Pausing, the adult listened wondering if she needed to go back in.

"Chocolate milk!"

"That's Chad's," Raye pointed out in a disapproving tone.

"Oh come on. He won't mind."

"You don't know him... Besides, should you really be drinking something like that before bed?"

"Raye-Raye, chocolate is associated with love. I am probably the world's leading expert on love..." Raye snorted. Serena could almost hear Lita rolling her eyes from the hallway. "This," Mina's voice declared. There was a sloshing sound. "Is simply _liquid love_."

"Oh brother..." the little brunette muttered, "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"Well when Chad starts asking who drank his stash of chocolate milk, I'm telling him you did."

Serena shook her head, shifted Amy into a more comfortable position, and walked down the hall while her three friends continued their "discussion".

- - - - -

Serena paused outside of Raye's bedroom door cocking her head for a moment. Then quietly she opened the door and stepped inside. As she did so, she could hear Reenie talking softly. Talking wasn't really the right term for it since she wasn't talking to anyone; it was more rambling. The middle-aged woman waited for her eyes to adjust to the dimness in the bedroom and then she padded softly across the floor.

"Reenie?" she said gently. Abruptly, the little girl stopped. There was an uneasy silence from where the seven year old was lying. "I'm gonna turn on a light." Not wanting a bright light, she carefully picked her way to the bed and found the bedside lamp.

As it flared to life, she turned her attention to her cousin in the sleeping bag. Reenie looked miserable. Even as she stared with worried eyes at Serena. Tears trickled out of her bloodshot eyes. She sniffed and looked thoroughly unhappy.

"Where's your sleeping bag, Ames?"

"I'll sweep with Reenie," the toddler mumbled out. She shifted a bit as if snuggling closer and not even opening her eyes.

The meatball-headed blonde looked at her cousin and asked, "Ames, wants to sleep with you. Would that be okay?" Reenie nodded jerkily. "Sweetie, you want me to brush out your hair first? You haven't taken it down yet."

"'Kay."

"Get your brush out while I tuck Amy in. She's pretty much out of it." By the time Reenie had retrieved her hairbrush from her overnight bag, Serena had settled Amy's tiny form into the seven year old's sleeping bag. "You sure you want Amy sleeping with you?"

The youngster nodded. 'Wish I could sleep with Serena.' Reenie mentally snorted. 'Yeah, as if that'll happen!' She glanced towards her sleeping bag and noticed that three year old Amy Anderson was deeply asleep.

Just as Serena was undoing one of Reenie's puffy pink pigtails, the door opened. Both Tsukino's turned to see whom it was. As it turned out, it was Lita looking quite drowsy and ready to join her smaller companion in slumber.

The seven year old blinked when she spotted Reenie sitting on Serena's lap. She raised an eyebrow questioningly. "I'm brushing out Reenie's hair. You want yours done too, Lita?"

"That'd be great, Mommy," Lita replied. She walked over to Raye's bed, flopped face-first down on it, wriggled further up it, and then rolled to her side. "What a day..."

"Where are the others?" her princess asked as she finally undid one pigtail and started brushing out the fluffy pink hair.

"Raye's stuffing her face and Mina's daydreaming about boys," Lita answered sleepily. 'At least, Mina's acting normal.'

"Don't go to sleep," Serena joked, "Raye'll be mad if she comes in here and finds you conked out on her bed."

"I like her bed..." the brunette commented and then added, "If this whole mess hadn't happened, we could've all stayed up talking until the sun came up." Lazily, she reached up and started undoing her ponytail.

"I... I didn't mean it to go this way," Reenie mumbled. Slouching and rubbing her eyes, more tears threatened to spill out. "I mean it just happened. I'm really sorry."

"Yeah well... Sorry doesn't mean shi..." Lita began and then stopped abruptly as Serena touched her gently.

"I-I mean it shouldn't've happened," Reenie was saying more to herself than Lita, apparently not paying attention to the other little girl. "It shouldn't've been that hard." The pink-haired girl sniffled. "Everybody hates me now."

"Reenie," Serena said sternly, "Nobody hates you."

"You don't but the others do," Reenie disagreed and then shook her head, "I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to talkback..." She seemed worried Serena might explode. "I-It's just that I don't get it." She threw up her hands and bounced from Serena's lap. One pigtail was still done up; it made her look off-balance. "I tried an... I wan'ed us to have fun!"

"Shhhh..." Serena admonished glancing towards Amy but the sleeping toddler didn't stir. One part of her noted that Amy had her thumb ensconced in her mouth.

"Sorry, I just can... I mean I don't know how I'm gonna make up for this. I keep saying I'm sorry but know nobody believes me." The youngster was nearly wringing her hands together.

Lita sat up and slid to the edge of the bed. She put her hands on her hips and glowered at the seven year old before her. "Well, that's because..."

"Lita," Serena hissed with quiet firmness. The brunette gave her blond friend a long look, blew out a breath, and looked at the ground while swinging her feet.

"Sweetie, come here and let me finish, then you can go to bed."

The pink-haired girl from the future reluctantly did so still fidgeting about; Reenie stood facing away from Serena. After a moment of silence, she started mumbling again, "I just don't get it. Luna Ball's never done this before." After a moment, Reenie fell silent, brooding.

She undid the second pigtail and started brush out the youngster's long pink hair again. She hummed softly trying to soothe Reenie. Unfortunately, the only thing it did accomplish was to get Lita to snuggle into her side.

Little Lita jerked upright as Reenie burst out suddenly, "It's always gave me what I wanted if it could!" There was a pause as Reenie drew in a deep breath and then sighed. "I can't even use Luna Ball to fix stuff 'cause I don't know why..." She started to shake her head but Serena firmly held it still. "I-I just wanted... I mean Luna Ball should've let us have fun. I just wanted us to play in the snow tomorrow 'n' stay up late and stuff. It shouldn't've turned you into kids and... And..." The seven year old at this point softly began to cry. Serena sighed and gently turned the little girl towards her.

"Reenie," Serena said, "You need to stop crying."

"B-but, what if the Sailor Scouts can't help me or Mommy no more?"

"Reenie, we went out and saved you, right?" She nodded. "And we came looking for you because we were worried."

"I'm sorry. I know I should've stayed. I was scared Raye knew and when they found the cookies... I don't know why though I mean." Reenie paused breathing hard and her mouth working but nothing came out.

"Calm down, sweetie. You don't want to have your energy beam go off, do you? That would bring those Negacreeps back," the middle-aged woman cautioned gently. She continued brushing the seven year old's hair. The child rapidly shook her head and gulped several times as if trying to clear something from her throat. "Well then, you need to stop worrying about it right now. We'll talk about it in the morning."

"**But I can't!**" Reenie cried with so much despair that it made Serena's heart ache. The youngster began to sob now and Serena drew her in and held her close. "What if Luna Ball's broke? How will I know when it's okay to go home? What if Mommy or Daddy gets hurt _worser_?!" she cried into Serena's chest.

Lita was glancing between Reenie, Serena, and the still sleeping Amy. 'How can she sleep through this?' "Look, I'm sure Sailor Pluto if not your parents would come and get you or let you know," she guessed to try and comfort the little girl (like her) who seemed inconsolable.

"What if Luna Ball don't work right no more? I'll be stuck here and have to go away from Auntie Ellen and Uncle Ken," Reenie blubbered.

"Reenie, they wouldn't just send you away," Serena assured her desperately trying to think of something that would snap her little cousin out of it. "Besides, you don't know for sure that Luna Ball is broken."

"It gots to be," Reenie replied, raising her head to regard Serena. Her eyes were wide and horrified and her nose was starting to run, "I messed up and I'm sorry... Really, I am... I mean I told Luna Ball to make you guys ACT like kids and see what happened? And I said some other stuff and that didn't work because Amy said it was gonna last forever and it shouldn't've... And nobody believes that I'm sorry and everybody wants you to... to... It's never done this stuff before. But it went all wonky. I said only last until lunch but Amy says it'll last longer so something GOTS to be wrong, right?"

"Sweetie," the blond matron said soothingly, "Sweetie, please you need to calm down, or you're gonna be sick." She produced a tissue from somewhere and held it to the little girl's nose. "Now blow."

As Reenie blew her nose, Lita frowned at her for a moment, then asked, "Hang on a second, kiddo... What did you tell Luna Ball?"

"I just said that I wanted you guys to have fun like kids so we could all play in the snow and stuff..." The seven year old added with a sigh. "And there ain't even no snow to play in."

"Yeah but didn't you say something else?" the little brunette interjected.

"I don't think so. Just that I'm really REALLY sorry, Lita. I know I was really naughty and..."

"I know that, Reenie," Lita interrupted, "I wasn't talking about that." Reenie looked puzzled, so did Serena.

"I don't know, what did I say?" the seven year old asked, sniffling. She frowned slightly when Serena presented another tissue for her use.

"Didn't you say something about it wearing off?"

"N-No..."

"Wait, Reenie, didn't you say something about it ending by lunch and you thought it wasn't supposed to last?" the brunette questioned. Serena's ears perked up then she resumed brushing the little girl's hair.

The pink-haired youngster frowned. "It wasn't s'pposed to, but I don't think it worked."

Silence filled the room as the trio thought about the information they'd learned. After another minute or so, Reenie's hair was brushed out. At the blonde's gesture, the two little girls traded places.

"Let me get this straight. You're... you are trying to tell me this whole thing was supposed to be temporary?" Lita prodded as Serena started brushing out her hair.

"T-Temp-porary?" That was a big word. "Would it help if it was?" Reenie returned curiously.

"Not where YOUR punishment is concerned, young lady," Serena put in with a frown. "You just aren't making this up, are you?" The girl shook her head. "Are you really sure about this?"

Reenie screwed up her face in thought and then nodded slowly, "Yeah... I told Luna Ball to end it by lunch 'cause I knew Lita would make us lunch or something and we were gonna leave then." She shrugged. "But Amy said it was perm... gonna last forever."

The matron started humming softly again and she smiled internally as she saw both children relaxing. She felt a smile form as she considered the petite seven year old on her lap. 'She's a cutie...' The combination of framing brown hair, serious green eyes, and a look of concentration made Lita look younger than she physically was. A huge contrast to the tall, intimidating, and "_talented_" teen she knew. 'Maybe I won't mention that...' Serena frowned slightly, 'Lita's hair...'

Her mental question went unasked as her "_daughter_" spoke up, "So? The question becomes do we wake our little genius up to ask her to run another scan."

The middle-aged woman considered for several seconds and then shook her head. "Ames has scanned us a bunch of times already. I can't see her missing something like this."

"It's 'portant though, right?" Reenie asked.

"Sure, it is... but waiting until morning won't change nothing. I mean even if it's true and Amy said that things will wear off, she couldn't speed the process up anyways, right?" Both children nodded. 'But do we dare not to?' Serena wondered.

"It's pretty shaky," the brunette agreed, "And why get up people's hopes. Reenie's caused enough trouble and they might..."

"I know, and I know you are really really ticked at me," Reenie sobbed softly. "That's why I didn't come out and tell you guys. I sorta forgot to I guess... but I just... just..."

Serena looked right at Reenie and asked, "Why did you do this, Reenie?" Reenie blinked, so did Lita. The pink-haired girl looked puzzled for a moment and then her features smoothed.

"Well, when I was at Lita's... we got talkin' and stuff and..."

"Oh?" the blonde wondered while glancing between the pair of second-graders. When it became clear neither was going to elaborate, she asked, "And?"

"And Lita was saying how lucky I was to be seven... She sorta wanted to be a kid again." Reenie grinned sheepishly. "I thought she was being silly. But I thought if, you know, we could all have fun and play together... Just for a little bit, we'd have fun and Lita would get her wish." 'And Lita could be my friend like Missy.'

Serena turned and gave the other girl a long calculating look, which made said girl blush. "Lita?"

"Well, Mommy, you see... I did sorta say something like that," the brunette confessed. "But... do we gotta tell the others? Mina'll howl for my scalp for sure!"

"Don't be silly," Serena admonished gently and gave each girl a hug. She then turned to Reenie. "I want to be clear on this again, young lady. Even if this is temporary and the magic wears off... you're in very deep trouble."

"Yes ma'am, I know," Reenie replied while blushing.

Serena nodded and then sighed a little. "Okay... Lita, go tell them."

Lita gave Serena a dubious look, "Okay, Mommy, but I think YOU should tell them."

Serena smiled and stroked Lita's hair gently. "Jeez... I'll go tell them." The middle-aged woman got up. "You two wait here. I'll be right back." Both seven year olds watched her leave the room.

"L-Lita?"

"Yeah?" Lita asked regarding Reenie sitting on the bed beside her. When the bigger girl didn't say anything, she continued, "I don't _hate_ you, Reenie. I kinda like this. Maybe if you had asked me... I'm just mad about my cookies."

"I know," the pink-haired girl admitted, pushing her index fingers together much as Serena would do; it made Lita smile a little. Reenie's next question though completely startled her. "D'ya wanna spank me?"

- - - - -

A short time later, Raye and Mina were staring dumbfounded at Serena. "Are you like completely totally serious?" Mina asked.

"According to Reenie, what she told Luna Ball was for it to stop at lunch or around there," the blonde woman explained. "She ain't sure if it'd work that way given what's already happened."

"And you don't want to wake Amy up for possibly no reason?" the raven-haired preteen questioned. Serena nodded Raye considered for a moment and then agreed. "Yes... that makes sense. I can't fault your reasoning, Meatball Head." She grinned as Serena stuck her tongue out although it was only half-hearted.

"I guess... 'though it would be nice to know tonight."

"We can wait until morning," Serena decided, which made the little eight year old pout. "I think we should all get a majorly good night's sleep." 'I don't know how Mom does it!' The others nodded in agreement although Raye seemed reluctant for a moment. However, she stood and followed Serena and Mina out of the kitchen shutting the lights off as she did.

When they entered Raye's bedroom, Reenie and Lita looked up and blushed as Serena narrowed her eyes at the guilty expression on the pair's faces. "What were you two up to?"

"Nothing," both seven year olds squeaked in unison.

Serena folded her arms and gave both children a dubious look. "Reenie?" she asked.

Before Reenie could answer, Lita piped up, "We were just talking about something we talked about at my place yesterday." The brunette gave the group of older girls an angelic smile. "Really." 'We were just talking... So why do I feel so queasy?' After a heartbeat, she answered her own silent question, 'Because it was something private about Serena that she obviously didn't tell Reenie...'

"Promise?" Serena asked, the little brunette looked indignant but Reenie nodded.

"You're in a lot of trouble, Princess..." Raye drawled. This made both younger girls blush.

"Nah, they're both too cute... How much harm can they do?" the pigtailed blonde asked while walking over to sit on Raye's bed. She grinned as both girls settled next to her.

"Ra-ye?" Mina asked sweetly.

"Yeah?"

"Can I sleep in your bed?" The little blonde gave the shrine maiden a pleading look.

"It's Raye's bed," Serena pointed out.

"But it's so comfy and bouncy..."

"Were you jumping on _my_ bed?" Raye demanded, whirling on beribboned girl.

"Lita did it too!" Mina declared.

"Shush you two!" Serena admonished, "You'll wake up Amy." Mina pouted.

"You're out of luck, shrimp," the raven-haired girl announced. "I'm giving it to Serena." Mina started to protest but Raye added, "It's the most comfortable spot around here and we're all younger than she is now."

'Yeah, those sleeping bags don't look so comfortable now,' Serena thought but said aloud, "Amy might have some trouble if she needs the toilet. Maybe I should sleep by her."

"I can help!" Reenie offered. "Really I can. You had me help her before!" She looked earnestly at Serena. "Amy wanted to sleep with me too."

"But if you cuddle with Amy, where am I gonna sleep?" Lita nearly whined.

"With a teddy bear? Maybe a green one since you seem to be jealous of poor Amy," Mina suggested sweetly.

"Idol wannabe!"

Mina looked like she wanted to explode but Serena stepped in. "Girls, don't fight. It's way majorly late."

"Sorry," Lita murmured while blushing slightly, "Mommy's right. It's late."

"Yeah, okay..." Mina agreed. She stuck out her tongue when the others weren't looking. "Serena... I'll trade you for Raye's bed."

"I'm only letting Serena use it, Mina," the raven-haired preteen groused. "Besides, what could you possibly give her that she'd be willing to NOT be comfortable for the night?"

"Sailor V's autograph?" Mina chirped happily.

"Oh brother," was the general response, although Reenie looked mildly puzzled.

"Well then," Serena looked to her young cousin, "I think it's only fair that Reenie _helps_ Amy." The pink-haired girl nodded. "Unless you want to wake up in the middle of the night for bathroom trips, Miss Aino?"

"**I can do it!**" Reenie squeaked. "Please Serena?!"

Serena looked questioningly at Mina who only shuffled her feet. "We're agreed then. Reenie, you are Amy's unofficial big sister. You stick to her like glue, clear?" She smiled slightly as Reenie saluted. "So unless there are any other objections... Let's go to bed." She gave Raye a hug, "My old bones appreciate your offer, and I accept!"

"Well in that case, Raye has to be my buddy!" the little blonde declared while latching onto Raye.

'Kami help me...' Raye thought while closing her eyes.

- - - - -

"Comfy Mina?" Lita Kino inquired sweetly a few minutes later. She and Serena were snuggled together in Raye's bed while Amy and Reenie curled together in Reenie's sleeping bag; both children were sound asleep. Mina and Raye (much to Raye's disgust) were sharing two sleeping bags joined together.

"No!"

"Oh... some-body is j-e-a-l-o-u-s... I bet her eyes are green now," Lita mock-whispered. "Yeah... It's the attack of the green-eyed monster!"

"I heard that, shorty!" Mina protested.

"Go to sleep, Mina," Serena growled tiredly.

"You can't tell... OW! Raye, I'm not some fire vision ya know!"

"Mi-na," the lone adult hissed more repressively.

"You ain't my mom, Serena. Just 'cause you're old now doesn't mean I havta listen to you. We'll be back to normal tomorrow," the eight year old blonde commented. 'I hope.'

Serena lifted her head enough so she could spy the scowling face of Sailor Venus. "As the Moon Princess, I can always," she began warily, "Make your condition permanent, _little girl_." 'Her parents would likely thank me.'

"You wouldn't." When Serena started reaching for her broach, Mina's eyes grew wide and she exclaimed, "Okay! Okay! **Uncle!**" And with that, the little girl wriggled herself into a more comfortable position. She went to sleep almost immediately snoring in Raye's ear.

"That was way mean," Lita giggled softly and as her temporary mother settled back under the covers.

"I can do the same to you, daughter," Serena pointed out softly.

"Sure, you can, MOMMY." Lita grinned and then chewed her lip for a moment. "Would you though?" The middle-aged woman cocked an eyebrow. "I mean that would be kinda cool. I could live with you then."

"I don't think I'm ready to be an adult yet, Lita."

"I guess... but I could still live with you and Sammy and Reenie."

Serena moved closer and lowered her voice more. As she held Lita in a loose hug, she asked softly, "You would really want to grow up again? I mean you'd be living under my roof. Despite the way Reenie acts, my mom's pretty strict and you seem to be an adventurous kid." The brunette blushed. "And besides, you'd have to put up with Sammy all the time." The little girl grunted. "You know, Lita, you can always call me if you're lonely."

"I know... Thanks. It's just I like this."

"What? Being hugged?"

"Yeah, well all of it." The little girl sighed a little and shifted closer. "Your mom doesn't seem so bad, but I know what you mean." She felt Serena starting to stroke her hair and she closed her eyes for a moment remembering her own mother doing the same thing. After a few moments, she continued tenderly, "Y'know, Reenie's not a bad kid." When her grownup friend snorted softly, Lita shook her head slightly. "Listen, Serena, call me crazy but I think Reenie acts up because she desperately wants to prove she's not a little kid in front of those people who matter to her most, namely you and Darien and the rest of us." She quickly glanced at all her friends fast asleep.

"Come on. Lita, she doesn't think..." the blonde whispered fiercely.

"Did you when you were that age?"

"Yeah... Well... I didn't have a magic ball and a need to be grownup."

"Not even a little?" When Serena mumbled something, which sounded suspiciously like, "Well..." Lita laughed softly. "Every kid wants to grow up and wants to do the things that older kids or their big brothers and sisters get to do."

"And how does that apply to Reenie?"

"Serena, she fled home and desperately wants to be a good girl, be brave for her parents..." The brunette was quiet for a few moments. "I would do anything to save them if my parents were in the situation hers is. We know what the Negaverse is like and we don't yet have all the details. Just imagine being away from home and something as scary as Rubeus and the rest of those Negacreeps after you."

"Are you saying I shouldn't punish her, Lita?"

"No, but when she acts up, I think it's because she wants to show she's not weak, that she's a big girl, and she can fix things." Lita considered for a few moments, listening to the soft breathing of her other companions as they slept. "I think Reenie blames herself for whatever happened to her mom."

"How do you figure that?" Serena questioned shocked. Eyes widening.

Lita shrugged slightly before answering, "Just a gut feeling. When my parents first died... Sometimes... Sometimes I thought I was the cause." Her friend didn't say anything but only hugged her closer. After a moment, the brunette nodded, more to herself than to Serena. "I know now it's not true but I'm older now... Well, you know what I mean. The fact that Reenie desperately wants to fix whatever is going on in the future, despite the fact we said we'd help, makes me think she figures that she's responsible for whatever happened."

"Any recommendations oh _wise Sailor Scout of Jupiter_?"

"Well if I was you, and I'm not but if I was, I'd sit Reenie down for a '_grownup_' talk after the dust settles. A talk about what happened before she showed. I'm not saying ask her what the future is like or anything but maybe just ask her what happened before the attack."

"You think that might help?"

"Can't hurt."

Serena was quiet for several seconds. So long in fact that Lita thought that she had drifted off to sleep. But then, she sighed deeply and said, "I guess I can do that. But I need to figure out what to do with her now."

"That's simple," Lita chirped.

"Oh?"

"Serena, this is majorly serious. You need to come down on her as hard as you can. You need to be firm but don't razz on her either." There was a few more seconds silence and then the brunette continued, "Have a mother-daughter talk with her and..."

"And..."

"Just be your lovable goofy self." She giggled as Serena swatted her on the rump playfully.

"Go to sleep."

"Yes Mommy."

There was silence in the room for a few minutes. Serena was on the edge of sleep when Lita asked, "Say Mommy?"

"Hmmm?"

"Since you're not dating Darien no more, can I?"

"Go to sleep," Serena commanded.

"I will, but can I? I mean he looks like my last boyfriend and... OW!"

"Sleep. Now."

"'Kay Mommy," the seven year old agreed and then mumbled, "I wonder where he hides all those roses?"

"L-i-t-a..." Serena ground out warningly.

"Shh! Wita's sweeping..." Lita got out between muffled giggles. She burrowed against Serena, closed her eyes, and drifted off to sleep. Serena wasn't long in drifting off asleep.

Outside, it began to snow tucking the city into a blanket of pure white and peaceful silence.

End of Chapter 8

Coming next in **Chapter 9 - Morning Madness**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	9. Chapter 9 Morning Madness

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 9 - Morning Madness**

**S**erena Tsukino rolled to her back, sighed, and then slowly opened her eyes as she woke up. 'Jeez, I'm still like _majorly_ tired.' Initially, the forty-something blonde was disoriented by the unfamiliar surroundings but after a moment, she remembered where she was -- Raye's bedroom. Stretching produced some cracking noises from joints. It didn't really hurt even though it sounded like it should have.

Serena's next awareness was a vague feeling that she couldn't quite place her finger on. Then she realized what it was -- she was alone. There was no one left in Raye's bed save herself. This was mildly surprising given the number of occupants that the room contained a few hours earlier.

Slowly sitting up, she glanced at the clock on the nightstand, blinked, and then let out a silent groan. 'It's majorly too early!' It had to be just after dawn. Serena glanced about taking stock of who was in the room. Aside from herself, the only other two people still in the room were Raye, who was lying on her back fast asleep, and Mina who was also asleep. She had a tight grip on Raye's left arm and seemed to be intent on hugging it to death.

Serena grinned. 'Cute! I wish I had a camera.' But that arm was likely going to be sore when her fiery friend woke up. That brought a new thought. 'Where are the others?' Given Reenie was the eldest physically of the three, likely not far.

She remembered the night. Originally, she and Lita snuggled together on Raye's bed but sometime later, Amy and Reenie had joined them. Serena had been too sleepy to protest what was going on so she wound up compressed between two seven year old girls while her stomach was used as a pillow by the three year old.

Quietly getting up, the middle-aged woman went to the window and looked out. She was startled to see a blanket of snow on the ground glistening in the cold dawn light. Shivering at the thought of the frigid air outside the window, she left Raye's room and headed for the bathroom. Surprisingly, it was empty. Not passing up what likely might be her only opportunity for some time to come, she visited the facilities and then went in search of the missing three children.

She didn't find the trio in the most likely spot -- the kitchen -- although signs of breakfast preparation were in evidence. Serena also found a note saying that when she (Serena) got up, it'd be great if she'd prepare them all some pancakes for breakfast. All three of them signed the note although somehow, Serena sensed that Reenie had been reluctant to sign it, possibly because her recent behavior didn't rate such a treat.

Frowning, Serena again wondered where the three little girls could have gotten to. 'They wouldn't have gone outside yet.' After a moment, she amended, 'I hope...' Serena headed for the living room of the Cherry Hill Temple's private quarters. It was there that she finally found her quarry.

Lita was sitting on the couch munching on some cereal, not taking her eyes off of the television set. Next to her, Reenie sat on the couch clutching Luna Ball in her lap and looking vaguely worried. The television was playing softly and there was only the sign of a small cereal bowl on the coffee table to indicate the Amy had been there.

"Anything good on?" Serena asked, entering the living room and looking around, "And where's Amy?"

"Amy's not here," came a small voice from behind the couch. Serena blinked and then grinned as Reenie rolled her eyes. Before Serena could ask, the small voice continued, "But Amy says Happy New Year! And floppy Easter too!" It giggled. The pink-haired seven year old on the coach covered her face and groaned as if completely mortified.

"Happy New Year, girls," the blonde reciprocated.

Before either Lita or Reenie could say anything, Amy came out, gave her dearest friend a smile. She then squatted down and turned her attention to the television.

Lita, on the other hand, scooted off of the couch with a butt-sliding maneuver, placed her bowl on the coffee table, and ran over to hug her pigtailed friend. "Happy New Year, Mommy!" she squeaked, "Can we have some pancakes now?"

"Jeez, you just ate cereal," Serena pointed out, bending down to hug the little ponytailed brunette. The youngster giggled and gave the adult a slightly sloppy kiss.

"I'm a growin' girl! Ain't that right, Amy?"

"Corwect!" the toddler exclaimed, bounced to her feet, and stretched so much she went up onto her tiptoes. "Lita's gonna be SO big, she'll be taller than ever!" Amy then crawled under the coffee table while watching the television.

"You know," Serena began, "What if Grandpa Hino or Chad spots you guys?"

"They have already," Lita chirped brightly. She went back to her unfinished bowl and hopped up on the couch next to Reenie again.

"They have?" Serena asked, feeling her stomach tighten slightly, "When?"

"We were gettin' cereal and he came in with Chad," Lita replied casually.

"Didn't he... you know like majorly wonder what two extra kids were doing here?!" the middle-aged princess questioned.

"At first, but we corwected the situation," Amy commented and flicked her eyes up towards Reenie who promptly blushed.

"Reenie!" Serena exclaimed which made the pink-haired girl blush even more.

"I didn't wanna... but they made me do it," Reenie mumbled. 'I had to. I'm their _big_ sister.'

"It's true, Mommy, and it wasn't that bad."

"Exactly what did you have her do, DAUGHTER?" Serena demanded of Lita as she crossed her arms.

"Amy had me make it so they think that Raye was babysitting her and Lita today," the pink-haired youngster explained, "He just shrugged his shoulders and said not to get into too much trouble while Raye was asleep."

"So where are they now?"

"Grandpa's in the Great Fire room; Chad's outside shoveling and stuff. They ate really quick and said they gotta get ready for the crowds today." 'They even helped us get the cereal.'

Serena came over and sat on the couch beside the two second-graders. "Cartoons?"

"Amy wanted to," Reenie remarked. "And I gotta stick to her like glue, right?" Serena nodded. "When she first got up, she wanted to go outside and play." Was her wish for the teens to act like children actually working? 'Did I overdo it?'

"Yeah, it snowed," Amy interjected, "We can partake in some boisterous jocularity outside." The blue-haired youngster squirmed out from under the table, scrambled to her feet, and skipping over tapped Serena on the leg. "YOU'RE IT!" She then backed away eyeing Serena warily while giggling.

'Right... What did these two feed her?' "Ames," Serena began, "Did... did Lita and Reenie tell you what we talked about before going to bed?"

"Of course, they did"

"And?"

"And what?"

"Amy, Serena wants to know what you found out," Reenie pointed out to the little genius. 'Jeez, she's acting like a complete baby! Although Lita ain't much better...'

"Reenie was corwect. She limited the time duwation. I scanned Lita and there is a minute reversal showing."

"That's great," the former junior high school teen commented, "So like how long until things are back to normal?" Being grownup was not as much fun as she had imagined.

"To hazard a guess..." the blue-haired toddler considered tentatively, "I would say late this afternoon. Logically, Lita should be the first to revert but I haven't scanned Waye or Mina yet to confirm it."

"I see... So you decided to watch cartoons while they slept?" Serena asked.

"You betcha, Mommy," Lita commented, "I'm gonna squeeze every second out of this kid thing." 'I'm really glad you're being a good sport about all this.' There was a pause and then she added, "'Sides, there's those stupid parades on later so we might as well watch something fun."

Serena sighed for a moment. "Well, it not lasting is good news I guess..." She rumpled Reenie's hair. "Bu the way, good job with Grandpa Hino." Reenie smiled, pushed Luna Ball away, and wiggled around.

"Happy New Year, Serena," the pink-haired girl finally declared. She snuggling close to her adult cousin and hugged her around the neck. After a few moments, Reenie released the hug and settled back. "I think my New Year's res... resolution?" She looked over to Amy who nodded. "My resolution is not to put my butt into so much hot water ever again."

"Oh come on," the little brunette beside Serena protested, "Now that we know it's likely not gonna last... Mommy can just forgive you and we can forget all about it."

"That would not be appropriate," Amy argued while turning to frown at her "cousin". Amy got up and wandered over to a window.

"No, it wouldn't," Serena agreed, "Still, I like Reenie's resolution." The blonde patted her cousin on said butt. "'Though hers is still in hot water at the moment." She decided to change the subject then because Lita was looking stubborn while Reenie was looking anxious again. "So, which one of you cute little bunnies decided to come join me and Lita last night?"

"I wanted to," the pink-haired seven year old admitted after a few moments, "But I knew you were really ticked. Amy thought it'd be good 'cause the floor is really hard." The blue-haired toddler nodded. "And when you didn't kick us out..." Reenie smiled.

"Me? I'd never kick a bunny out of my bed. They're all too brave and cuddly." She hugged both second-graders and then laughed as Amy hopped up and squirmed onto her lap so she could be hugged too. After a little while of silence, when she felt herself wanting to fall back asleep, Serena transferred Amy to Reenie's lap and prepared for the day. "Well, I guess I should get..." She trailed off as someone, probably Raye, let out a shriek of dismay. Getting up, Serena dashed from the living room and headed to the source of the shouting -- Raye's bedroom. The three younger girls followed quickly after their middle-aged princess.

- - - - -

When they got to the room, the woman and trio of girls discovered that both Raye and Mina were up, each standing rigid and intently glaring at each other.

At first, Reenie couldn't deduce what was causing them to look so upset but then a foul odor reached her nose causing her eyes to go wide. She felt her heart go out to poor Mina as she saw a rather large dark patch on the child's nightclothes. A quick glance downward confirmed her fears that Mina had wet the bed. That explained, in part, why Raye was yelling. Serena yelled at her for wetting the bed, an event that fortunately happened infrequently now compared to her first arrival.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Serena interjected, raising her voice to cut across the tirade that the preteen priestess was giving.

"Serena! That little snot wet the bed!" the raven-haired girl shouted. She bent down and yanked up the sleeping bag. "Look at my floor! I have a piss stain on MY carpet!"

"It was an accident!" Mina shouted. Painful memories of similar scenes until she was ten years old played out in her head. She had never told her Scout friends (or comforted Reenie when she had the chance). Her eyes were misting over and her cheeks red in both embarrassment and anger. "Jeez, Raye. You don't have to go all-spastic. I..."

"An accident?" Lita questioned. "Come on, Mina, Amy I'd buy but you're way older than her."

"Well, so is Reenie... at the moment, and she still does it," the little blonde retorted, eyes blazing. 'Sorry Reenie.'

Lita looked at the large stain on the floor. "Man, did you leave anything in Tokyo Bay?" Mina bristled. "I guess we should start calling you Sailor **P** instead of Sailor V, girlfriend."

"This isn't funny!" Raye shouted, "If she hadn't been so..."

"**It ain't Mina's fault!**" The room fell silent, all eyes turning to stare at Reenie. The pink-haired girl moved to stand in front of Mina protectively. She glared up at Raye, hands on her hips. "Nobody likes being yelled at for an accident. I know I don't when Serena scolds me. But really if you want to be mean, Raye, you should yell at me."

There was a long pause. "Why?" the priestess asked, puzzled and sounding annoyed at the same time.

"'Cause I made Mina be little, right?" The raven-haired girl reluctantly nodded. "So she couldn't help it. I bet Mina don't wet the bed when she's fourteen." The pink-haired girl glanced over her shoulder and slightly upwards to regard the disheveled blonde who looked mildly surprised. "Ain't that right, Mina?"

"Well, yeah," Mina agreed mildly after a moment of confusion, and then more confidently, "I mean that's right!" She nodded in agreement with herself. "So don't yell at me, Raye." 'Thanks Reenie. I owe you.'

"Recent studies indicate that eighty percent of children cease bed wetting by age five," Amy began. Reenie and Mina flushed. "Much of the remainder have such deep sleep patterns that they miss the signals their bodies send them during the night. Fortunately, the vast majority of incidents end by adolescence." She regarded her embarrassed friend. "I would assume that you were such a person when you were younger, corwect?" 'I better not mention some of the other causes.' She then wondered off towards Raye's bed without anyone really paying any attention.

"Well yeah," the eight year old agreed.

"Raye?" Serena questioned.

"What am I gonna do about my rug?" Raye groused.

Serena rolled her eyes, knelt, and with a small frown held her hand out above it. The others blinked as they felt a magic surge for a moment and then fade away. With its fading away, so did the putrid stain. "There," Serena said sounding a little tired.

"You used the Imperium Silver Crystal to remove a stain," Lita squeaked eyes wide.

"Yes, not bad... 'though I won't wanna try that when I'm a fourteen again..." She never had felt so "in-tune" with the magical gem. "I think my control will be down."

"If we ever are," Mina mumbled looking unhappy.

"Oh, we will be, Mina," Amy assured them. The others looked and found that Amy was apparently trying to do a handstand on Raye's bed. The toddler looked between her legs and added, "Sometime after lunch." She rolled to the side, plunking onto the bed and then sat up to regard Serena with an obviously antsy look. "Can we go play in the snow, Auntie?"

"Whoa!" Raye demanded, "After lunch?"

"But we haven't had breakfast yet," the blue-haired girl interjected mournfully.

'Man, she's really losing it...' Reenie thought. "Amy, Raye means that you guys will be back to normal after lunch, right?" She gave the blue-haired girl a hopeful look.

"Wight!" Amy chirped. "I'll need to run a scan on you and Mina to confirm but given what I've ascertained while scanning Lita earlier, we should be back to normal."

"I think," Serena decided before either Mina or Raye could demand further explanations, "That we should all get cleaned up and dressed." She thought of Raye's nice warm furo. "First, let's go climb into the furo." She noticed that Amy looked suddenly apprehensive.

"What's up?" Reenie asked.

"I don't wanna get splashed," the toddler said seriously. 'Or drowned.'

"Nobody will, will they?" Serena asked, eyeing Mina, Lita, and Reenie in turn. All three youngsters nodded in agreement which caused Raye to snicker. "After, Reenie can get Luna Ball to whip up some more clothes for us." She winked at the little girl. "So while we soak, I think you three..." Here Serena glanced at Lita, Amy, and Reenie. "Need to tell Raye what you cooked up when Grandpa Hino found you." The preteen paled a little. "Don't panic, Raye. It was quite a neat trick."

- - - - -

Sometime later, one woman and five girls were lounging in the furo's warm waters. Their hair was wrapped securely in towels. Mina appeared fairly upbeat as she asked, "You're positive?"

Amy looked like she wanted to answer angrily but after blowing out a huge breath in exasperation, she answered, "The data I colwected as we were preparing for the furo indicates that the process begun last night has reversed." She paused, shifted to get more comfortable and continued, "It is not the normal aging process everybody goes through, it's sped up, and by late afternoon the effect will be neurtwalized." With that, the toddler started drawing patterns in the water losing interest in what the others were doing.

"That majorly sucks," the little brunette sitting on Serena's lap muttered. She shifted backwards and wrapped Serena's arms about her like a blanket.

"You can't be serious?" Mina demanded.

"I am so," Lita snarked back. "I'm perfectly happy to be seven." 'At least, for a while longer.' Her forehead wrinkled in a frown. Mina just gaped in disbelief.

Raye decided to intercede before an argument ensued, which was a little ironic to the priestess because she normally was the one arguing with Serena. "I hope you aren't lessening Reenie's punishment just because it won't last."

"I don't know if she really should be punished," the brunette seven year old ventured. Everyone stared at her that time. "I was talking with Reenie last night and I do remember saying I kinda wished I could be a kid like her and hang out. She just wanted all of us to have fun together."

The preteen priestess frowned and asked dubiously, "Aren't you just a little miffed at your cookies being sabotaged?"

"Well yeah... I was thinking she could make me a batch and pay for the ingredients out of her allowance to make up for it." Lita glanced at Reenie who was pointedly looking out of the bathroom window. The girl was consciously keeping out of any discussion about her behavior unless Serena asked her directly. Her attention was drawn from the window to little Amy who had begun dog paddling about the furo.

"Okay, we're all affected so let's hear you out. Raye, what would you suggest?" Serena chimed in while shifting Lita off of her lap. She ignored the pout the seven year old gave her.

As the pigtailed woman shifted down into the water further, Raye answered in a firm voice, "I told you last night, Serena. Reenie needs a sound spanking." The priestess pulled her legs out of the way so that Amy could paddle by without really thinking about it. "Look, yeah it's temporary but what if we had been allergic to whatever it was she put in? What if we've all turned into infants permanently? What if we had decided to sell those cookies?" The pink-haired girl squirmed. "Whether Reenie had good intentions or not doesn't excuse the fact that she could have really hurt someone."

"Amy?"

"Wha?" the toddler asked, coming up to kneel and face Serena.

"What do you think Reenie's punishment should be?"

"I will abstain," the toddler replied, "You are acting _in loco parentis_..." The others blinked. "Serena is weplacing her parents in some way with your mother's consent. I trust her decisions." With that, she started swimming again, this time on her back.

"Mina?"

The younger blonde regarded Reenie for a moment, turned to Serena, and shook her head. "I'm with Amy... Loco parents and all." Raye snickered. "What?"

"Nothing," the shrine maiden commented, "So Serena?"

Serena looked at her cousin. "You have anything you want to say?" Reenie glanced towards the water and started pushing her index fingers together nervously. The Sailor Scouts glanced at each other and grinned for a moment. "Well?"

"I know I really messed up," the pink-haired seven year old admitted, speaking to the water, "I'm sorry and I really hope we don't have to tell Auntie Ellen or she's gonna go ballistic." She lifted her head and observed Serena's attentive face. "I didn't mean to hurt nobody." More softly, she went on, "I think it actually worked a little too well." She glanced to Amy and then flicked her eyes to Lita and Mina.

The middle-aged blonde tried hard not to grin at the implications. After a long pause in which Reenie went back to watching Amy paddle about the furo making while making motorboat noises, Serena sat up, stretched a little, and then nodded as if making a decision. "Okay, let's get this out of the way." There was complete silence in the room, even Amy had turned and was looking at her maternal friend. "First off, Reenie, you're going to make Lita a batch of cookies like she suggested using YOUR allowance to pay for it." Reenie nodded acceptance. "Since Amy and Mina have left it up to me, you'll be grounded to your room the rest of this week."

"Yes Ma'am," the youngster stated softly.

Serena paused a moment and then continued, "And while I'd let Raye personally spank you for causing her so much extra stress..." Reenie winced. "I think Mom's gonna take a chunk out of your hide when she finds out."

"You're gonna tell her?" Reenie squeaked.

"No other way I can explain you being grounded."

"Oh man!" the seven year old moaned, "Aunt Ellen's gonna make my butt visible from Crystal Tokyo!" Reenie suddenly sobered. "Wait a sec..."

"This isn't up for discussion, Reenie Serenity," Serena pointed out while frowning.

"Not that." Reenie was now looking rather worried. "What about you?" The other girls blinked.

"What about me?" the middle-aged woman wondered.

"Well... you changed too," Reenie pointed out while gesturing at Serena, "Or are you REALLY ticked at me?"

It took Serena few seconds to puzzle that out. Mina and Lita looked baffled. Amy quickly lost interest and went back to being a boat. Raye was the only one who seemed to understand but wasn't saying anything. After several seconds, Serena's expression smoothed and she replied, "I am very sore with you, young lady." The pink-haired girl lowered her head. "And since this was supposed to be a special treat, I think it's only fair that you lose another treat." All of the girls, save Amy, looked baffled by this. "So... After we're done here, you, Miss Reenie Serenity Tsukino, are going to phone Darien and tell him that you're not allowed over to his place for a month and why you can't go over." Lita, Mina, and even Raye winced as Reenie slumped forward, looking miserable.

There was silence for about a minute and then Amy sat up and demanded of Raye, "Sing a song!"

Raye blinked, "A song?"

"Yeah a song... a nice one."

"Like what?" Raye asked. She glanced at the wall clock. "I really should get started helping Grandpa soon... visitors will be showing up and he'll need help."

"Pwease?!" Amy asked while giving Raye a sad puppy-dog look.

"Well, what song?" the priestess asked, trying hard not to be too terse.

"_The Bumblebee Song!_" the toddler declared.

"The what?" Mina and Lita asked at the same time that Serena firmly said, "Not before breakfast." Amy pouted.

"The what song?" Reenie asked glancing between Amy and Serena.

"T_he __**Bumblebee**__ Song_," Amy grumbled. "I think Waye could sing it very well. I admire her vocal resonances!"

"Thanks, Amy, but I don't know that one."

"Even if you did, we won't be hearing it before breakfast," the middle-aged blonde reiterated firmly.

"Why?" Reenie asked, puzzled. Serena only shook her head.

There was a long pause and then Mina declared, "Now that that's settled, everyone. What's for breakfast?"

"Pancakes!" Lita and Amy exclaimed.

"Um..." the raven-haired preteen looked mildly troubled, "What are we gonna tell Grandpa and Chad about Serena? Kids are one thing but she's a complete stranger to them."

"I could use the Disguise Pen," Serena suggested.

"What's the Disguise Pen?" the pink-haired youngster asked.

By way of answer, Serena stood up and carefully climbed out of the furo. Dripping wet, she donned her bathrobe from the pile that Luna Ball had produced for them and made a flicking motion. A moment later, the magical pen appeared in her hands. She held it out for Reenie to examine it. "Oh," was Reenie's only comment before she asked, "What's it do?"

"It uses magic to help change your appearance," Serena explained as she stood outside the furo. "Watch." The blonde lifted the pen above her head. "_Disguise Pen... make me a fourteen year old schoolgirl!_"

When the swirl of light faded, Mina began to laugh. Raye quickly covered her mouth to smother the shocked expression she was giving Serena. It took the Princess of the Moon a few moments to figure out what the problem was.

While she hadn't changed size nor grown a day younger, something definitely had happened. Gone were the bathrobe and hair towel. Instead, a middle-school sailor-style uniform now provocatively hugged her adult form. A large powder blue ribbon cutely adorned each streaming golden pigtail, which had lost their meatballs. Reenie watched in puzzlement as her strangely dressed cousin blushed. "So that's what got Darien attracted to you," Raye drawled. This caused Serena blush to deepen.

Amy swam over and peered over the edge. "You're not supposed to wear shoes in here!" she admonished her grownup friend. Serena lifted a foot to examine the black Mary Jane shoes and white knee-length socks she now wore.

"Jeez, I didn't know you were into role-playing!" the little Goddess of Love exclaimed and then immediately looked repentant when the much older blonde gave her a severe look.

"What do you mean role-playing? Like acting?" Reenie innocently questioned. This set the raven-haired preteen into a fit of giggles. 'Everybody's losing their minds!' Reenie decided and looked with worry up at Serena. "I think whatever Luna Ball put inta the cookies is starting to do things..." She glanced towards the giggling Raye and the snickering Mina.

"Don'tcha worry, kiddo," Lita consoled the pink-haired girl, "I don't get it either." 'Although I doubt Miss Haruna would let her into class dressed in that gettup.'

Serena patted her uniform then felt her hair. "Well, at least I'm dry." Lita snickered. "Lita..." The brunette only grinned.

"Sorwy Mommy."

Amy suddenly asked, "What do you get when you pour hot water down a rabbit hole?"

"What?" Reenie asked, puzzled. Mina looked nonplussed.

"Hot cross bunnies!" the toddler declared and started giggling.

Serena groaned and deactivated the Disguise Pen's magic. 'I'll never hear the end of this.' She stood back in her bathrobe and with her meatballs intact. "At least, I'm dry still... So like why didn't that work?" She then nudged their resident genius inside the furo. "Well?"

Amy sighed. "I conjecture that since you are under effects of another magical process, the Disguise Pen would likely not have the ability to override it."

"Oh..."

"Well... there's just no way to explain you really," Raye mused. "At least that I can think of."

"Well," the pigtailed began cheerfully, "I don't think that's a real problem. We'll just have Reenie use Luna Ball on him and let it worry about it."

"And if it can't?" Lita asked. "Mommy, this is serious. Nobody can make pancakes like you."

"Come on, Lita. She ain't your mom," Mina retorted.

"Nuh huh... Until I'm big, she is," Lita countered and stuck her tongue out. The Orange Scout rolled her eyes. "Just watch your step, SAILOR P."

"Lita," Serena growled as Mina's face took on a red flush.

"Okay, okay... truce," the seven year old offered while holding up her hands. "Sorry." Mina stuck her tongue out for a moment but then smiled. Then the little blonde giggled as her stomach rumbled.

"I think," Serena announced, "That is the call for breakfast." She hefted a large bath towel. "Come on, girls. Time to get out of there. Ames, you first and we'll get you dried off."

End of Chapter 9

Coming next in **Chapter 10 - Snow, Play, and Interventions**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	10. Chapter 10 Snow, Play, and Interventio

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 10 - Snow, Play, and Interventions**

**S**unlight from the crystal blue sky glinted blinding white off of the drifts of soft fluffy snow that had accumulated in the Cherry Hill Temple's backyard. While Raye Hino helped her grandfather with the visitors to the temple that cold New Year's Day, her regressed friends played behind the private quarters with much exuberance and happiness.

Most of them played anyway. After a while, the lone adult of the group retreated to the porch and settled herself there. She had fun at first. She twirled Amy and then Lita about until their feet left the ground while they giggled and squealed with delight. It was over all too fast for the pair of little girls. So now, they pouted.

Reenie, apparently trying to distract the former eighth-graders from such childish behavior, suggested they make snow angels. This seemed safe enough so Serena allowed herself to be coaxed into participating in this new activity. She quickly realized her mistake after somehow, making snow angels turned into Mina and Amy deciding to use Serena as a model for a snowwoman by packing snow about her.

While this was going on, Reenie and Lita retreated a short distance away. Reenie faced the former tall teen in such a way such that she could still watch Amy out of the corner of her eye. "That was a great breakfast," Lita began while patting her stomach, "I can't wait to see what Mommy makes us for lunch."

"Yeah, I like Serena's pancakes." '_Almost_ as good as Mommy's.' The pink-haired girl licked her lips in remembrance. "I didn't think she'd give me any."

The brunette blinked. "Serena wouldn't... no, couldn't refuse you that. She'd see it as unfair." Lita saw a fair amount of similarity between Reenie and what she guessed Serena must have been like as a child. She doubted her pigtailed blond friend would agree. 'Could they actually be related?'

"What about you?" Reenie asked, turning her attention away momentarily from the girls who had secured Serena's boots in the freshly fallen snow.

The other seven year old shrugged. "I was the one who thought we shouldn't get all bent out of shape." Lita frowned. "Was your aunt really that ticked?" Mrs. Tsukino had called her daughter after breakfast for a status report. Thankfully, Raye had answered the phone. After a few minutes in which Serena had had a quiet but rather intense looking conversation, Reenie had been called to the phone. "It looked pretty bad."

"It was, Lita," Reenie remarked unhappily, "She said I was gonna..." The pink-haired girl stopped talking abruptly and her cheeks turned pink. Lita gave her a sympathetic look. "I figured Serena'd be madder." The little girl heaved a heavy sigh and then checked on Amy.

Lita smiled and then her grin blossomed into an even larger smile. In a hushed tone, she suggested, "You know... you could use Luna Ball on Serena and her mom so you wouldn't get into trouble. I betcha Mina and Amy would go along with it."

"Luna Ball... don't work on Serena." The pink-haired youngster shuddered. "I don't even wanna think what Serena would do if I even thought about it." When she saw that her friend looking disappointed, she pleaded, "Please, Lita, don't even mention it. If Serena gets it into her meatball head that I even thought something like that, she'd turn me over to the Negaverse."

"Yeah... maybe you're right." Although Lita sounded doubtful, Reenie didn't hear any such doubts. They turned their attention to where Amy had just squealed in protest. Her expression smoothed into lines of relaxation from its tenseness when she saw that Serena was retaliating by finding the ticklish spots that Amy and Mina had. She smiled slightly, regarded Lita, and then abruptly frowned.

"Wanna go help?" Lita asked. She knew her fellow seven year old wanted to.

'They're acting like babies.' She sighed. "I guess I should help Amy," Reenie decided while nodding at Lita's suggestion. "It's what sisters do."

She smiled. "You'd make a great big sister, Reenie."

Reenie smiled momentarily then glanced over to Serena and bit her lip. Then she asked the ponytailed girl in a soft whisper, "Do ya think Serena would actually let Raye spank me?" Lita shrugged. Reenie apparently stopped worrying because she hurried over to Amy and the others when three year old demanded that her "_cousin_" come and save her. Grinning, Lita followed her although ostensively to assist Serena. She couldn't let her princess have all of the fun.

- - - - -

What started out as a tickling competition morphed into a game of tag with Serena being designated "Home Base" because she pointedly refused to run around after anybody while Reenie was available. Lita was a little annoyed by this turn of events but she quickly got over it when Mina daringly, or stupidly depending on whom you asked, zoomed in, gave Lita's rump a rather hard tag, and zoomed out again. Soon, Lita was off in hot pursuit. Both children ran through the trees calling out to each other. Amy, who at times seemed as if she wanted to be tagged and at other times wanted to avoid being tagged, added to the chase by introducing herself at random points. Mina could always keep ahead of Lita, though she did slow at times.

Reenie kept after Amy managing somehow to draw her out of Mina's path before the beribboned girl could bowl the toddler over with her greater mass. After a while though, Lita, realizing she couldn't catch the bigger girl, decided to tag an easier target, i.e. she tapped Amy gently on the head. Amy, deciding to try her luck, immediately sprinted off after Mina. Serena watched this scene with a bemused expression on her face.

"Amy, you ain't gonna catch me!" the little blonde exclaimed at one point as she darted away from the preschooler who was quickly getting frustrated. Given Amy's relatively size, it was extremely unlikely that she could catch any of her older friends.

"Amy," Reenie said while putting a hand on the toddler to halt the younger girl's continued pursuit, "I have an idea."

"What?!" Amy demanded in a hard tone while glaring at the taunting blonde out of reach a few yards away. The dark expression vanished was being replaced by a happy grin. She turned, tapped Reenie on the nose, and cried, "**TAG!** YOU'RE IT!"

Slowly the pink-haired seven year old stood and gave Mina an evil look. 'I'll teach her to tease a baby!' The little blonde gulped and started backing away as Reenie shot after her. With a squeak, she was off again. Lita Kino started to laugh because Reenie was actually gaining on the fleet-footed Sailor Scout of Venus. Mina might have the advantage in a sprint but Reenie could run for longer and keep her pace up.

Amy for her part toddled over to Serena and flopped herself down in the snow completely drained. "You ready to go inside, Ames?" Serena asked. She was starting to feel stiff and cold.

"No," the little girl replied while shaking her had. Lita came over still watching as the two combatants circled warily; both looked determined. Just as she neared Serena and Amy, Mina suddenly pivoted and dove for the tress with Reenie in hot pursuit.

"Girls!" Serena called out, "Don't go too far!" There was a muffled response from the pair. She slowly shook her head. "Well then, what now?"

"Let's make a snowman!" Lita suggested, "A real one." Dropping to her knees, she started rolling a ball of snow. Amy, with Serena's help, began rolling another (if somewhat smaller) ball as well.

- - - - -

Some distance into the trees, the morning sunlight made a speckled carpet of light and shadow on the snow-covered ground. Panting, Mina held up a hand. "Truce... I give..." Reenie frowned but stopped and watched as the eight year old thudded onto the ground and drew her feet up so she was sitting cross-legged. "Man oh man, I didn't think running in snow would be harder than just plain old running." She grinned then. "But Tokyo doesn't get much snow. Neither did London."

Reenie sat too. 'Boy, Mina's quick.' She tried to catch her breath as the second-grader gazed about the small clearing. "Um, Mina... Think we went too far?"

"Nah... But we should get back before Serena spazzes out."

"I bet she wouldn't even worry about me," the pink-haired girl grumbled.

"Reenie, that's majorly harsh. Why are you always so hard on Serena?" Reenie shrugged. "Well, why did you put the stuff into the cookies?"

"Like I said, I wanted us to have fun," the girl repeated while crunching some snowing her gloved hands. "It just didn't work out... and with me sneaking off to Lita's yesterday... Well, things just got worse."

Mina remained silent for a few seconds. "I guess you didn't really mean any harm." She grinned as Reenie glanced up at her. She then took a quick look over her shoulder. "Look Reenie... Thanks for this morning. I mean with Raye and all."

The seven year old blushed a little and shifted. "Not a problem. It really ain't your fault. Raye should've known that, 'specially with the way Serena goes on 'bout me..." Here the youngster's cheeks took on a darker pink, which could not be explained by the cold crisp air.

The ribbon-wearing blonde shook her head slightly. "You must think that Serena keeps a diary about you or something."

"She doesn't," the pink-haired girl remarked while pushing herself up, "I looked." She gave a guilty sort of look at Mina who only giggled. Mina pushed herself up too. "She treats me like a baby though."

"Not for my money, Reenie. Serena doesn't blab everything to us. She complains about you sure. I won't lie about that. But the way you talk, you'd think Serena says you wet the bed every night."

"I don't!" Reenie denied hotly.

"Calm down, girlfriend," Mina said while making shushing motions, "I just said you _ACT_ like that. You're all prickly about it. It's not true though. She's only mentioned it once and I think she was more annoyed 'cause Luna had thought she had been responsible for it than anything else." 'I should've put a stop to it then.'

"Oh..." Reenie wasn't quite sure what to say about that.

"Come on, girlfriend," Mina prodded while started back towards the others, "Let's get back before Serena starts hunting for us." Reenie nodded and fell into step. After a little bit in which the pair walked in silence, Mina mused, "I s'ppose I could've stood up for you against Serena more than I have. Sorry."

Reenie shrugged. "You're _HER_ friend, Mina." Regardless of how Mina looked now, she could not be a best friend for life like Melissa.

The little blonde threw an arm about Reenie and corrected, "I'm yours too... if you'll give me a chance." She smiled as the pink-haired girl gave a hopeful grin.

- - - - -

Lita, her light brown hair occasionally blowing in her face, was trying to make the base of the snowman larger so it would support the second large snowball when Mina and Reenie came out of the trees and glanced around.

"Where's Amy?" Reenie asked in a worried tone.

"Where's Serena?" Mina wondered while coming over to inspect her ponytailed friend's handiwork.

"Amy needed to use the facilities," Lita answered, brushed her ponytail out of the way, and then looked critically at her work.

"That sounds like a good idea," the little blonde agreed. "Be back in a few..." She skipped toward the private quarters.

"Maybe I should go find Amy," Reenie ventured but stopped as Lita shook her head.

"Don't worry. Serena's with her... You know, kiddo, this is lots harder to do than the last time I did this." She giggled.

"Oh... need some help?" the pink-haired girl asked after a moment. When her companion nodded, Reenie moved to help the smaller girl lift the second ball that would form the snowman's midsection onto its base. "Was Serena sore with me?"

"What?" Lita asked puzzled, "Oh..." She continued after a moment, "Nah, she wasn't sore. Ames needed to go and we weren't gonna wait 'til you and Mina got back." Seeing the worried expression on Reenie's face. "Don't stress out about it." Once they had the ball settled in place, she commanded, "That's it... Reenie, hold it steady while I pack some more snow around it."

"Okay," Reenie agreed.

A short time later, Mina came back out and announced that she was going to stroll around front and check on Raye. Also, that Amy and Serena should be out in a little bit. Soon, the only sounds filling the backyard were the crunching of snow and the distant buzzing of voices at the front of the temple.

"I'm glad Serena's lettin' me play in the snow. It don't snow like this much," Reenie commented.

"Yeah... Y'know, Mommy was saying how maybe after this, I might get to use the Disguise Pen so I could hang out with you a little." The brunette looked up and winked cutely. "That's if I'm a '_good little girl_'." The pink-haired girl was staring at her counterpart in disbelief. "What?"

"You can't be serious!"

"Oh sure I can, cousin." Lita grinned.

"But... but... What about the cookies?" Reenie was confused. "I thought you didn't like... but..." She frowned and gave Lita a hard look. "You mean you REALLY LIKE being a kid?"

Lita laughed and then laughed even more at her friend's annoyed look. "Reenie, I was annoyed that you messed with my cookies. It's like somebody scribbling all over your pictures. You wouldn't like that would you?"

"No," the seven year old admitted.

"Well, my cookies are like your pictures. It's my art."

"Oh..." Reenie sounded less puzzled.

Lita packed more snow about the second ball and stood up to give it a critical look before kneeling down to make more adjustment. "And I did say yesterday -- was it yesterday? Seems like a long time ago -- Anyway yesterday, I told you I wouldn't mind being little."

The other seven year old was quiet for a few seconds and then countered, "But you act like you'll be mad when it's over... and you keep calling Serena '_Mommy_'."

"Oh," Lita chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't mind being little for a _SHORT_ time, Reenie. And don't tell the others but I did ask Serena if I could borrow the pen so we could play together occasionally. On the other hand, I wouldn't wanna grow up again for real." The little brunette looked about and then lowering her voice, she continued, "See, I do it to razz Mina. Our blond friend was so sure she was going to get a date last night. She got it in her head that Serena '_stole_' him from her because Serena was 'more mature' than her."

Reenie blinked once, twice, and then started to snicker. "So is that why you call Serena '_Mommy_' too?"

"Of course, kiddo," the brunette admitted, "But also I think she makes a great mom. She's different than my mom but when she hugs me, I feel nice and safe." Reenie didn't respond to that although she did look wistful. "Come on, let's get another ball going."

The two little girls had been working on making the snowman's head a few moments when Reenie said, "You think Serena makes a good mommy?"

"Oh sure," Lita answered without hesitation, "Or well she WILL. She's really been a real good sport about me calling her Mommy 'n' stuff... I don't think my mom would've minded." Lita smiled sadly. 'I wish my mom could've known Serena and the others.' "There is only one teensy-weensy problem though, Reenie."

"What's that?" the pink-haired seven year old asked.

The brunette paused in her work, rocked back on her heels, and stated soberly, "See I kinda figure it goes both ways."

"Huh?"

Lita shrugged. "Think about it, Reenie. I can get all sorts of cuddle time and hugs and stuff by basically acting like a kid. It's kinda awkward otherwise." She grinned at her friend's dubious look. "Then again, I figure I'm open to any consequences of me being naughty."

"No way!" Reenie exclaimed, "That's just silly, Lita."

"Nah," Lita countered. "If Serena... or Mommy's gonna put up with me pretending to be her kid, then I figure I'm in for all of it. In for a penny, in for a pound they say. I can't just pick and choose. You can't, right?" The slightly larger seven year old shook her head. "You might think I'm nuts but like Amy told us... she's acting in_ loco parentis_."

"Loco par...?" 'There's that weird word again.' "So what does that mean?"

Lita went back to creating the head and explained, "I asked Ames. She said it's legal term in Latin, which basically means in place of your parent."

"Serena does sorta remind me of my mommy," Reenie mused softly. Then realizing what she said, she pleaded, "Please don't tell her, Lita."

'Serena would love to hear you say that.' The brunette stopped her work and gave the pink-haired girl an awkward hug. "We'll help you make sure your mommy's okay."

"Thanks... you might need to rescue me after we rescue her."

"Oh?"

"I think I did something she wouldn't like."

After a few seconds, Lita realized Reenie wasn't going to say anymore so set to the task of attaching the snowman's head to its body. Lita was holding the head still while Reenie packed snow about it to keep it in place when the little girl asked, "Lita?"

"Hmm?"

"What would your mommy do if you lost something that was REALLY important?"

Lita frowned in thought, her eyes narrowing as something seemed to fall into place. She smoothed her expression before her friend regarded her though. "Gosh, I dunno. That never really happened?"

"Would she be mad if you did?"

"Probably," the little brunette speculated. "I know when I accidentally broke something she liked, Mom would get mad, usually 'cause I was bouncing a ball in the house or something." The little girl giggled then, which made Reenie look up. "I know one time, I totaled a brand-new lamp and just missed a... real ugly looking bowl." She paused. "As Mom was picking up the pieces of the lamp, she kept sayin' why I couldn't have broken the bowl instead." Seeing the questioning look, she elaborated, "You see, Reenie, Mom hated that bowl but couldn't get rid of it 'cause it was a gift." Lita's eyes glimmered in reminiscence. "Most parents love you lots and sometimes scold you for stuff you shouldn't've done. That's why I say if I did something wrong as a kid, I wouldn't really fuss if Serena wanted to scold me."

Reenie considered that. "I broke a vase once too." Lita gave her an interested look. "I had a complete Serena attack."

"Klutzed out, huh?"

"Yeah..." Reenie grinned and blushed at the same time. "I was running down a hallway and..." The pink-haired youngster dropped her chin to her chest. She tried to make her voice deeper and snooty sounding while wagging her finger. "Said it's something princesses just don't do..." She smiled as Lita laughed. In a more normal tone, she added, "Said I should be more like my mommy -- a grand lady."

"Now that was way harsh!" the shorter seven year old quipped. "Want me to beat 'em up?"

"Thanks Lita. You can help Serena," Reenie offered. "I think she'd do that too." Lita nodded. "IF she knew."

"You didn't tell her?"

"I didn't wanna seem like a baby," the pink-haired girl countered defensively.

Lita rolled her eyes. "Everybody has accidents and Serena is pretty accident-prone at times. She'd likely admit that herself." Reenie grunted. "I think she'd side with you. It's not like you did it on purpose, right?"

"I didn't... I was in a hurry and tripped and..." Reenie made flailing motions with her arms. She ended up knocking the snowman's head off in the process.

Before the girl could react, her friend commented, "You were right, Reenie. It DOES need to be bigger." As the pair went to retrieve the snowman's head from the ground, she asked, "So what happened when your mom found out about the vase?"

"She doesn't know..." Reenie admitted softly and for a few seconds seemed to stare into space. "But that ain't the real thing that's gonna get me into trouble."

"Oh?" Lita asked, trying not to sound too interested. "You didn't get Luna Ball to make a _Cutie Moon Rod_ or something to blast the people who were picking on you, did you?"

"Man!" Reenie complained, "I should've done that!" She looked annoyed with herself. "I used Luna Ball but it was for something completely stupid and it got..." Here, she stopped and glanced away.

Lita frowned then prodded gently, "You think whatever you did got your mom hurt, right?" The little girl beside her whipped her head around and stared at her, eyes shimmering, and lip quivering. "Am I right?"

"I... How..."

"How did I know?" Reenie nodded. Lita shrugged and sighed. "I've been there, kiddo. My parents died in a plane crash. I cried 'cause I didn't tell them I loved them before they left 'cause I was mad at 'em. And worse, I was still young enough to think that maybe I had something to do with what happened. I didn't, but it took me a long time to figure that out." 'I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad.'

"Sorry Lita..." Reenie snuffled a little and rubbed her eyes. "Mommy's gonna to be so ticked at me."

"Normally, I wouldn't say this but I think that would actually be a good thing."

"What?!" the little girl squawked, staring at the ponytailed brunette in disbelief.

"Listen, I didn't mean it like that but look... for your mom to be ticked at you, she's gonna have to be okay. Right?" Reenie nodded. "She's probably thinking '_Just wait until I get my hands on Reenie._'" Reenie appeared unhappy. "Of course, you might spend then next gazillion years being hugged to death because she's was worried about you."

"That would be nice," the youngster admitted. "I bet I'll lose Luna Ball forever though." 'Maybe Sailor Moon can calm Mommy down first.'

"How come?"

"Serena will probably send home a note when I finally go so she'll know about yesterday and today." Lita tried not to grin. "And then, Mommy'll wanna know how I unlocked the case where the Silver Crystal was and..." She trailed off because Lita's eyes had gone wide. Glumly, she nodded. "It just vanished. I didn't even touch it!"

"Ouch..." was the little brunette's only comment before she amended, "Well... maybe it ain't as bad as you think."

"Huh? How could the Imperium Silver Crystal missing NOT be bad?! Mommy says it's the most 'portant thing we got!" Reenie glared as her companion girl began to snicker.

"Oh man, it'd just be like that to happen."

"What?!"

Lita was trying hard not to break out into laughter. Taking a few deep breaths, she settled herself and began, "I won't tell you the whole story since I wasn't around for all of it. You'll have to get Serena to do that... or Luna. Anyway, we were running around all over the place for weeks looking for the Rainbow Crystals so we could find the Silver Crystal. Luna was having kittens most of the time 'cause we couldn't find it and the Negaverse seemed to be getting ahead of us on the search."

"And?" Reenie prompted as Lita paused.

"And... Well, it turned out it was hiding out INSIDE Serena all the time. It came out in one of her tears." Lita shook her head. "I don't know what got up Luna's nose more: The fact that we'd been worrying sick the Negaverse would get the Crystal before us and it was right under our nose all the time, or the fact that the Silver Crystal only showed up when it chose to."

"You're kidding, right Lita? The Imperium Silver Crystal was hiding from you guys?" Lita nodded. "And you think the one that vanished on me might be doing the same thing?"

"I'm no expert but if I had to bet a batch of cookies on it, I'd say it figured it could get a ride with you to wherever or whenever it's going." Reenie looked outraged. "Now you know how we felt. And it does goofy things to Serena too."

"Like what?"

"Not for me to say, cousin, but when she uses it directly things tend to get strange."

Further conversation was cut short as Amy and Serena finally made an appearance.

- - - - -

Raye Hino bowed as the latest person left the tent with their charm. She straightened and then gave a squeak of surprise when she saw Mina staring at her with a wide grin on her face. "What?" Raye demanded.

The little blonde smiled even more. "You seem really busy, Raye-Raye."

The raven-haired girl returned the smile and nodded slowly as she stretched. She was happy to use Mina as an excuse for a break. "You ain't kidding, Mina. I knew we were gonna be busy today but it's been non-stop." She sighed a little. Not that she really minded that. It was good for the temple. 'I just wish they'd quit telling me how cute I look.' "How are things going anyway?"

"We're having fun," Mina replied and then asked, "Raye, would you maybe do me a favor?"

The preteen blinked. "What?"

"Would you tell Serena you don't want Reenie's head on a platter?" The priestess scowled and shook her head firmly. "Why though? She didn't mean it."

"True, she didn't mean the side effect but she did want us to change. That's manipulation and it's wrong. That girl never thinks what might happen." 'Just like Serena.'

"She's a little kid, girlfriend. She's supposed to be irresponsible," the little eight year old pointed out.

"I might buy that if Serena wasn't more mature." The shrine maiden frowned. "Hey. Why are you suddenly being the kid's advocate?"

"Because I think Serena will let you spank her."

"Sometimes I wish her mom would," Raye commented, purposely misinterpreting what Mina meant. The eight year old gave her an annoyed look. "Listen, Mina, being responsible isn't killing Serena." 'I'm so proud of her.' "She had the right idea the first time that Reenie pulled this type of thing. Too bad Catsy interrupted her."

"So every little thing Reenie does Serena should stomp on?"

"No."

"I can't see why you're so ticked, Raye. You didn't get it as bad as the rest of us. Chad doesn't seem to be harassing you."

"He's just exhausted from keeping up with Gramps," the raven-haired girl countered, waving away Mina's remark. Seeing the girl wasn't going to give up so easily, she said firmly, "Look, Serena needs to be consistent and I'd rather have her be consistently firm with Reenie and relax a bit as a treat. It's harder to be all lenient and then try and enforce good behavior."

"Twue," a new voice commented. Both girls jumped and turned to see Amy and Reenie walking towards them. "Waye is cowwect."

"Hey you two, what's up?" the little blonde asked and then added, "Where's Lita?"

"Amy wanted to come and visit Raye," the pink-haired girl supplied.

"No, I didn't, Reenie," Amy disagreed, "I was having fun... You just wanted to be away when Serena blew up."

"Why would she blow up?"

"Um... No reason," Reenie replied nervously, then changing the subject, "So how's things going?"

"Lita called Sewena a meatball-headed Gwumpy Gus," the toddler offered.

"AMY! I was trying," the seven year old hissed tersely, "NOT to embarrass Lita."

"Sorry, Reenie, I forgot..." Amy looked perplexed before requesting, "Forget what I said."

"Why was Lita arguing with Serena?" Mina asked.

"She wanted... She was trying to get me out of the hole I dug." The pink-haired girl shook her head. "I tried to talk her out of it."

"You did?" Raye asked.

Reenie shrugged. "I got myself into this and Auntie Ellen knows and Serena wouldn't be real happy if I used Luna Ball to make her forget what happened." She regarded Raye. "Please, Raye, do you think I could get a super special good luck charm?"

"Me too!" Amy chirped.

- - - - -

When Raye entered the private quarters sometime later, it was nearly eleven in the morning. Her three younger companions had gone off with Lita. She appeared soon after their arrival at Raye's tent. The brunette had looked red-faced and annoyed. The priestess hadn't had much time to delve into what the issue was and had watched the group of children leave with some relief.

She stretched and winced as her joints cracked. After stopping in at the bathroom, she made her way to her room. There she found her friends. Amy, who was sprawled out on Raye's bed, appeared to be sound asleep. Reenie, Mina, and Lita were gathered about the low table listening attentively to a book that Serena was reading. Raye was mildly amused to see that Reenie was almost asleep. The remains of a mid-morning snack were scattered about the table.

Stepping into the room quietly, she declared softly, "I see things have calmed down now." Serena gave a little start at the interruption and then looked over at her and smiled.

"Hi Raye," the pigtailed adult greeted, "You hungry?" The Moon Princess glanced at the remains of the snack and gave the preteen an apologetic look. "Sorry... I can whip something up for you if you want."

"Um... okay," Raye agreed, 'I wonder what state the kitchen our in?' Serena collected the garbage and left the room with Raye in tow. "So how have things been? I heard there was some excitement with Lita."

"Me and Lita settled it." Serena smiled slightly. "She also apparently has decided to talk to me again." She glanced over at Raye. "'Though I think she just wants to cuddle." The blonde laughed at the irony as the Shinto priestess grimaced. As they entered the kitchen, Serena said, "Raye..."

"What?" the preteen asked distractedly. 'Well, it's not a mess. Maybe being older helped her dexterity.' She doubted it would be wise to ask Serena such a thing though.

"I am sorry about what happened with the cookies."

"Why? It's not your fault, Serena."

"I guess not but I do feel responsible. I brought her and I told Mom that she should come."

"Serena, Reenie not coming wouldn't have made much difference except we would have avoided a fight with the Negaverse." Her friend grimaced. "Grandpa still sees me as a little kid, even when I'm my _normal_ age." She frowned a little more. "Has Mina asked you about lightening up on Reenie, Serena?" The middle-aged woman shook her head. "She was trying to soften me up."

Serena shrugged. "It's outta my hands, Raye. Mom knows."

Raye mentally frowned. 'Serena sounds disappointed for some reason.' "Is your mom mad at you?"

"No," Serena replied while rooting around in the refrigerator for something for Raye, "But I feel like me passing the buck to her is sorta copping out." She lifted her head and saw the priestess giving her a puzzled look. "See... Well, I don't know maybe you won't..." The adult's forehead wrinkled a little and then she elaborated, "I guess I feel like I should handle it completely." The blonde sighed, stood up, and closed the refrigerator door. "I guess I just don't want Mom to think I'm irresponsible."

Raye didn't really think about what she did next. She moved to her pigtailed friend and gave her a tight hug. Serena hugged her back and for a moment, there was silence in the room. When Raye pulled away, she smiled a little and said, "Thanks." Serena gave her a little puzzled look but let the hug go. "Serena... going to your mom for advice IS being responsible. You can't help what Reenie did beforehand."

"True, although me not watching her like a hawk kinda helped her get out of the house in the first place."

The raven-haired preteen waved that way. "If you watch kids like hawks, Serena, they do one of two things: They either rebel or go out of their way to violate rules just to tick you off."

"Oh?"

"Or they become afraid to do anything and can't cope when they get out into the real world on their own. Sure you try and protect them but watching out for every little danger isn't real helpful either."

"Raye, it sounds like you're talking from experience," Serena commented.

"Gramps can be annoying but he's got a lot of wisdom too," Raye replied with a shrug. She chewed her lip for a moment. "Look... let me give you a bit of advice, Serena. You don't have to say anything, just listen." Her princess nodded. "I think part of the problem with Reenie is that you're not consistent. One minute, you're very strict and the next minute, you're partying with her like you were seven too." She grinned as Serena gave her an annoyed look. "Sure, you can be her friend sometimes, even her big sister, but I think your mom's counting on you to also be the more mature one. That means occasionally playing the villain."

"I know..."

"I know you know... It's what you do with that knowledge that counts. Serena, I want Reenie's scalp and my opinion of her isn't very high at the moment. But my views are like a speck of dust next to yours." Her friend snorted. "For my money, if you really disapproved of something, Reenie'd be more inclined to listen to you than your mom."

Serena opened her mouth as if to argue but then, they heard a scream coming from the direction of Raye's room.

End of Chapter 10

Concluding next in **Chapter 11 - Forgettable Memories**

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	11. Chapter 11 Forgettable Memories

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Chapter 11 - Forgettable Memories**

**S**erena yelped in surprise as she went around the corner towards Raye's room and nearly collided head-on with a fleeing figure. Raye, however, wasn't so lucky. At first, Serena thought that the victim might have been Reenie but the figure turned out to be Chad. The young man was mumbling, "I didn't see I didn't see," while trying to disentangle himself from the raven-haired priestess.

"**CHAD!!!**" the preteen bellowed. Chad froze, and then fell backwards as Serena pushed him off of her. She levered herself up from the floor and glowered at him.

"**I ****SWEAR**** I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING!**" the longhaired acolyte assured them while waving his hands in a defensive gesture.

"WHAT," Raye asked while folding her arms, "Exactly _DIDN'T_ you see, buster?"

"Now Raye..." Serena began but despite her current height and age, she shrunk away from the glower of her fiery friend.

Chad hurriedly offered, "I was gonna like see if you knew who had snarfed all my chocolate milk last night." He looked up at her and frowned. "Say Raye... did you shrink?" He ducked as the raven-haired girl seemed to swell with indignation. "So anyway," he quickly recovered, "Like I knocked on your door, and Reenie and those little girls you're babysitting said to come in... which wasn't very nice if they knew Lita was..." Chad swallowed.

"Lita was what, Chad?" Serena immediately prompted trying to forestall the imminent explosion.

"Well, she was like changing." The young man's eyes glazed slightly as he added almost reverently, "I didn't _mean_ to see, but... there was _**so**__ much_ of her!"

Raye choked for a moment and then started sputtering incoherently. Serena just shook her head and then Chad's words sunk in. "Are you... COME ON, RAYE!" She hastily grabbed Raye and rushed down the hallway with the still sputtering priestess in tow. She burst open the bedroom door making Mina leap back in surprise with a squeak. Lita did fair much better. She gave a squeal and seemed to curl in on herself while holding pieces of tattered clothing to maintain her modesty. Apparently, the old expression blushing from head to toe could literally happen as was proved by the ponytailed teen before them.

Lita relaxed a little once she realized three things: who it was, that the door was shut, and finally that neither Chad nor any other male lurking nearby could see her. "You're big again!" Serena observed stating the obvious. Sailor Mercury, still in toddler form, seemed even tinier next to the lofty brunette. "What happened?"

"We heard a knock at the door," Reenie explained, "And when we told Chad he could come in... Then BANG! That happened." She gestured towards the embarrassed teen. Serena had to conceal her smile. Meanwhile, the pink-haired youngster just knew she was going to get blamed for it. "I mean she just... _blew up_!" Even now, Reenie was staring in awe at the girl who just moments ago was smaller than she was. 'I wish I could grow up like her and save my mommy.'

"Yes, Reenie is corwect," Mercury confirmed. She brought her VR visor down. "It appears that Lita has rapidly reverted to normal. Her physical structure matches the norms for her I have on file." She tapped a few keys on her minicomputer. "Fascinating, her aging pwocesses have already slowed to what they would normally be had magic had not interfered. Quite impressive I must say." The toddler tapped a few more keys and started scanning Mina and Raye.

"It was a major surprise, guys," the busty teen commented while walking somewhat wobbly to her overnight bag. "Talk about bursting at the seams." She grinned as she riffled through her bag. "Everything seems to be back to normal..." She giggled. "Although things look a little smaller."

"Come again? Why are you so happy?" Mina asked. "Me and Raye haven't changed yet!"

"That is because..." Mercury explained, "The effects that occurred to Lita took place earlier last evening. I would conjecture that the rest of us will transform back within an hour, two at most, based on my watest scans." Amy looked up. "Of course, factors such as our rate of metabolism and duration of ingestion will provide some variance."

"HOT DAMN!"

"Good," Raye cheered. She gave Reenie a predatory look, which made the younger girl gulp.

"Are you sure everything is okay, Lita?" Serena wondered, "It was an awful sudden."

The ponytailed brunette turned and wiggled her now bra-covered chest. "Yep, all the assets are at the bank. It'll take me a bit..." She looked as if she was going to make another comment and then seemed to remember that Reenie was in the room. "Well... To get used to things."

"I'm just glad you're all right," Serena retorted. "But I wish I'd known. I wanted a picture of us before you changed back. Sort of a family photo."

"Not on your life!" the little blonde protested. Amy nodded. "I certainly don't want to make this a Kodak® moment!"

"You're not being fair," Lita countered while pulling up her jeans. She'd already donned a green baby-T.

"I'm with Amy and Mina," Raye chimed in. "Sure, it did help with the temple funds this year, but Grandpa sees me as a little kid as it is. I don't need to look the part too." She glowered and complained, "Besides, people kept saying I was cute!"

"Well, you are cute, Raye," was the brown-haired teen's comment. She winked but then her smile was momentarily hidden as she pulled a red turtleneck sweater over her head. "Listen, things are back to normal... or will be."

"That's right," Serena agreed. "We just have to wait. And while we're doing that, Lita can make us lunch."

"Before I do that," Lita interrupted holding out her hand, "Serena, please hand me the Disguise Pen." Her friend blinked. "I think you deserve that picture, _Mommy_."

"Thanks, _daughter_. If the others don't wanna," the pigtailed woman mused, "I'm _not_ gonna force 'em."

"Are you telling me..." Lita asked, green eyes looking seriously at Raye, Mina, and Amy, "That you didn't have _any_ fun? Not at all?" The raven-haired girl shook her head but Mina and Amy though squirmed uncomfortably and dropped their gazes to the floor. "Serena did the best she could in a bad situation. A little picture won't hurt, will it? No one but us will ever know it was you." The brunette did not grin when she saw all three girls blushing. "So, Serena will lend me the Disguise Pen and we'll take the picture. Then I'll make us a wonderful lunch."

"I'll help!" Reenie spoke up. Silence filled the room. All five girls turned to stare at Reenie. She at first squirmed but then started to get irritated as they just continued to look at her as if she'd said something unbelievable. "Well, I can!" she protested trying hard not to sound like she was whining. The girls exchanged a look before staring at her again. "WHAT?!"

It was Raye who spoke first. The raven-haired preteen glanced at Serena once and then drawled, "You really do want that spanking, don't you?" The seven year old went bright pink as she blushed, easily matching her hair color.

Before Reenie could think of a response, she noticed that her cousin was giving Raye a disapproving look. "I think maybe," Serena interjected after another few seconds, "You and me need to take some lessons from Mom first." Raye shot the pigtailed blonde an annoyed look.

'Serena can...' Reenie wanted to accuse them of not trusting her, which they apparently didn't. 'But I guess they got a reason...' She would have been more upset had not Serena said it so nicely. "I guess I'll just help Amy then."

"I think that's for the best, Reenie," Serena agreed. Then she came over and gave the little girl a quick hug before following Lita out of the room.

- - - - -

A short time later, Lita, back to her normal teen self after the promised photograph with Serena had been taken, was busily preparing lunch. She grinned to herself as she noticed said pigtailed friend observing her with studied concentration.

"I don't know how you do it, Lita," Serena sighed while fiddling with a raw carrot, "Man, when I change back, things are gonna suck."

Lita blinked. "You don't wanna change back?" Her friend just gave a shrug. "You can't wanna stay older than your mom. You sorta said that yesterday, right?"

"I suppose..." the middle-aged blonde replied.

Lita set down the chopping knife that she was using on the counter, moved to where Serena was, and enfolded the slightly shorter woman into a massive hug. "I wanna thank you for being such a good sport about me calling you Mommy and stuff." Serena hugged her friend back. After a few seconds, they pulled apart. "Now you shouldn't worry. You'll be fine," Lita admonished.

The blonde shifted a little and then admitted, "I just worry I'm gonna be a complete klutzoid when I go back to being me."

"You wouldn't be you if you weren't." The brunette resumed chopping then grinned as Serena wagged a finger at her. "Sorry." She giggled as her friend "hrrphmed!"

"I guess I should've let Reenie help," Serena mumbled. She was feeling guilty even though she knew that she really shouldn't. 'Is everything going to go back to the way it was?' Is that what she wanted?

"I dunno. I doubt any of the girls would eat a bite if she had."

"Yeah, 'though maybe she could put something into mine so I can face down Darien again."

Lita paused in her chopping. "Excuse me?" she asked looking around to stare at the forty-something blonde. When Serena outlined what had happened the night before, she boggled for a moment and then chuckled. "Man, I would've paid money to see that."

"Yeah I know. It was kinda nice." She looked embarrassed for a moment. "I mean I never had the guts to just tell him off like that but I think he deserved it. I still don't know what I did to..." Serena knew normally she would be wailing before she got out what she had to say. She chewed her lip for a moment. "Maybe I shouldn't've been so rude though."

"Oh come on, Serena. He's the one that didn't want to date you, remember? The fact that he can't stand to see you with another guy just shows how much of a... well meatball-head he is." The brunette grinned at the cynical sounding snicker that her friend gave. "As to having guts, next time, just pretend that he's still with the Negaverse."

"Lita! I can't do that!" Serena protested.

"Sure, you can. You've faced down Rubeus and Queen Beryl and the Four Generals and all other sorta creeps. So he doesn't want to be Endymion to your Serenity."

"Serenity who?" a voice queried from behind them. Both girls turned around and saw Reenie standing in the doorway.

"Princess Serenity... from the Moon Kingdom," Serena supplied.

"Oh! Lita told me about that," the youngster commented airily and suppressed a grin as her cousin gave Lita a suspicious look. "What about her?"

"I thought," the blonde began disapprovingly, "You were going to watch Amy, young lady."

"I was!" Reenie protested, "But now she's playing in the water." Both older girls cocked their eyebrows inquisitively. "She needed to go... So after, she was washing her hands but she won't stop." The pink-haired girl considered for a moment. "I think she's gonna play doctor with one of Raye's stuffed animals."

"Raye, _OUR_ Raye, has stuffed animals?" Lita asked with a chuckle.

"Oh yeah, Grandpa Hino kept them and showed them to us earlier."

"And you want me to stop Amy," Serena speculated.

"Uh, yeah actually..." The little girl shifted from foot to foot for a moment. "See I figure that Raye won't do anything to Amy if Amy embarrasses her, but she'd hang me up by my pigtails if I did."

- - - - -

Moments later, Serena stood watching little Amy wash her hands exactly as Reenie had described. "Ames... I know washing your hands is important after you use the toilet, but you're not going into open heart surgery." The toddler was standing atop a stepstool with soapsuds up to her elbows. She only paused a moment to give Serena a serious look. "You wanna know what I think?"

"What?" Amy asked.

"I think you're just mucking about in the water now," her pigtailed friend offered while trying to mimic her mother's tone. When Sammy was little, he had been the "_mucker_" whether it be water, sand, or mud. Somehow, her brother had managed to grow out of trying to eat the entire beach. However, Serena suspected that he still jumped into an occasional mud puddle if nobody was around.

"Am not," Amy squawked while turning around and tilting up to give Serena an annoyed look. "I am prepawing for surgery, Serena." She pointed to a stuffed panda in the corner.

"Yeah right," Serena quipped and then blinked in surprise as Amy flicked her hands and soapsuds spattered Serena. "Well," the adult continued, "I know where you got your attack name from now." She smiled and was pleased to see that three year old was grinning back at her. "Well there, _Doctor_ Anderson, get the soap off so we can go see how lunch is doing. You can't operate on an empty tummy, right?"

"Right! Proper nutrition is important," the toddler agreed and turned back to the sink.

Meanwhile, Raye, Mina, and Reenie were in Raye's room. The ribbon-wearing blonde watched as Raye paced about the room and finally demanded, "Raye, would you please sit down and stop pacing back and forth like a caged tiger?"

"I just want this nightmare to be over with," the raven-haired girl declared and shot Reenie an annoyed look.

Seeing this, Mina rolled her eyes. "Like look, girlfriend, answer me a question?"

"What?" the shrine maiden demanded as she flopped down onto a pillow beside the low table.

"If, and I'm saying if, _you_ wound up being older rather than younger, would you honestly have been as upset?" Mina and Reenie watched the twelve year old closely and after a long minute or so, she shook her head. "See?"

Raye shook her head again and sighed. "Mina, that's beside the point. You're not seeing why I'm mad."

"Because Chad and Grandpa still think you're a kid, right?"

The raven-haired girl gave a frustrated shrug. "A little. But it's more than that. I mean Grandpa's _always_ seen me as a kid. He probably always will." That was comforting on some levels. "What I don't like is that..." She paused and seemed to reconsider what she'd been about to say. "I mean I didn't like being knocked ass over apple cart by a Droid yesterday." Mina blinked. "I should have been able to handle it and if I had been my proper age I know for a fact I could have!"

"But..." Reenie ventured but halted as both Mina and Raye turned their gazes on her. She shifted before continuing, "I mean that was 'cause it was a Droid that used fire, not 'cause you were little or anything, right?" When the raven-haired girl didn't respond, she added, "I mean Amy'd be in big trouble though 'cause she's littl'r than you and all her attacks are water."

"Mercury's water attacks would've been more effective," Mina agreed. "But you're right about her size, Reenie."

Raye frowned. "But what if the Princess had really needed help? The only thing that saved us was the fact that Sailor Moon has better access to the Imperium Silver Crystal!" 'I was so proud of her.'

"Yeah okay, so like why are you still majorly ticked now that we know it won't last and things DID work out okay last night?"

"Did they?" the raven-haired preteen challenged.

"Oh come on, Raye. We've all had tough enemies to face down. Look what happened at D Point." Reenie blinked as Raye cringed; even Mina shivered a little. The youngster wanted to ask but figured it wouldn't be a good idea at that point. "Anyway, so what's got your knickers in a knot?"

Raye blew out a breath and stated sternly, "I'm ticked, Mina, because Serena is letting Reenie off scot-free!"

"She ain't," Reenie protested, "I gots grounded and I can't see Darien and..."

"Big flippin' deal," the preteen priestess muttered.

"It's a big deal to her, Raye," Mina pointed out, "And Serena couldn't be harder on her."

"And why not?"

"You heard her in the furo. She has to figure on what Mrs. Tsukino's gonna do..." Mina glanced at Reenie. "And given what we could hear of the conversation this morning, it ain't gonna be no picnic when Reenie gets home." Reenie nodded in agreement.

"Mrs. Tsukino's not going to be as strict with Reenie as Serena would. And besides, what's to stop her from using Luna Ball?"

"Are you nuts?!" Reenie demanded, "Serena would kill me! She'd probably blast Luna Ball into _Droid doo-doo_!"

"Droid doo-doo?" Mina inquired, a smile tugging at her lips. The little girl shrugged. Turning to Raye, she said, "And like just think what Reenie's mom's gonna say when she finds out about all of this?"

'Maybe they'll forget by then,' Reenie hoped, although somehow she doubted it. 'Man...'

The raven-haired priestess shook her head. "We aren't going tell Reenie's mom." Both younger girls blinked. 'Jeez... if I could only convince Serena.' The shrine maiden wanted to spank Reenie herself so a thorough job would be done. Unfortunately, she knew her blond-haired friend would never approve it and she wasn't about to make Serena angry with her. "And that's another thing..." Raye mused alone more to herself than the other girls. She seemed about to say more but stopped.

All three jumped as the door opened and Serena stuck her head in. "Raye, can you grab something out of Amy's bag?"

"She changed?" Mina and Raye asked at once. Reenie's face was focused on Serena however.

"Yeah," Serena made a face then explained, "I had picked her up to carry her back here and poof. One minute a cute little toddler, the next..."

A handful of minutes later, fourteen year old Amy Anderson came strolling teetering slightly but nonetheless looking purposeful. She'd changed into her typical attire. This time consisting of a set of jeans and understated blue sweeter. She shrugged her shoulders as if trying to settle her normal body about her more comfortably.

"Everyone, I'm certainly glad that's over. I fervently hope that such a disconcerting incident as this will never be wepeat... repeated." She made to sit down, paused, and turned to Reenie. "Reenie, thank you for your assistance during this turbulent time. However, further assistance from you is no longer required." And with that, she plunked herself down at the table and pulled out her minicomputer to process more data.

"What about me?!" the youngest Sailor Scout practically whined, causing Raye to roll her yes.

"I believe that you should be changing soon, _Miss Aino_," the blue-haired teen remarked scientifically, "I would also speculate that next Serena and then finally Raye will change. The data supports the hypothesis that transposition will occur in the same order in which we noticed change."

"Oh great!" the raven-haired priestess groused, "So how long?"

"I cannot set a precise time."

"Not a problem!" the little ribbon-wearing girl giggled while jumping up. She ran over to the large suitcase that she had brought and started rooting through it.

"Hey, what are you doing, Mina?" Serena asked.

"I'm not gonna wait, Serena. I'm gonna to get changed now," Mina informed them from the depths of her bag as clothes came flying out of it. "I don't wanna have happen to me what happened to Lita."

"Whoa!" Serena inquired as she moved aside one of Mina's brassieres, "Did you pack every piece of clothing you own?"

"You never know what a situation might call for," the eight year old offered nonchalantly. "Man, where did I put it?!"

"I'm not sure I want to know what IT is," Raye replied dryly. She blinked as Mina said something rude, which made Reenie's ears turn red. She grinned as Serena got a disapproving look on her face. "Somebody's in trouble!" Raye announced in a singsong voice.

"Who?" Mina asked, poking her head up and looking around.

"I think I hear Auntie calling me," Reenie said quickly and left the room.

- - - - -

Lita Kino walked down the hallway. She was headed to Raye's room to inform the girls that lunch would be ready soon. She grinned slightly. 'I liked being a kid but even Serena appreciates that I can cook.' The brunette shook her head. 'Some things never change.' She placed her hand on the doorknob to Raye's bedroom door and paused.

"You look completely ridiculous!" floated Raye's voice. It sounded more amused rather than derisive. "Honestly, girl, can't you wait like everybody else?"

Wondering whom the raven-haired priestess was talking to, Lita carefully opened the door and saw Raye, Amy, and Mina. Lita blinked. 'So what Reenie said was right... Amy is big again.' Lita hadn't quite believed it. 'Man, I thought Ames would be partying or something... I know I wanted to be a little for a bit but I wouldn't have wanted to be a baby.'

Lita's attention was drawn down to Mina as she demanded, "Lita, tell them I don't look stupid!" The beribboned eight year old stood up and pirouetted slowly. The tall brunette couldn't help but gape at the sight before her. Mina had put her normal teen clothing on and of course, none of it even remotely fit her eight year old frame. "Well?" She prodded with her hands on her hips.

"Would... you like an honest answer?" Lita questioned, stepping fully into the room and closing the door. The little blonde glowered as Raye snickered. Amy looked towards the ceiling as if seeking guidance from the gods.

"And I thought Serena was the clothes hound," the brunette commented dryly, which made Mina pout.

"Nah," Raye offered, "Serena isn't really a _clothes hound_... She just has really good fashion sense."

"And I don't?"

Wanting to prevent, at least for a moment, the coming argument, Lita announced, "Lunch'll be ten minutes, guys, maybe a little less. Do you happen to know where Serena and Reenie are?"

"I think they went off to find Grandpa and Chad," Raye answered. "Something about making sure they aren't surprised to see 'a big Amy instead of a little one.'" Raye got a suspicious look on her face. "Hey, that's why Serena wasn't so ticked at Reenie about this mess."

"Why?" Lita and Mina asked together.

"Bigger boobs," the raven-haired girl declared. Amy sighed and shook her head resignedly.

- - - - -

Reenie and the other girls were eating lunch. Or rather, the girls were eating lunch and Reenie was mostly pushing the food around her plate with her fork, occasionally putting some in her mouth -- she didn't want Serena to scold her again for playing with her food.

The pink-haired youngster glanced up at Mina, who was now back to her perky fourteen year old self, and then flicked her eyes to Raye, who was sitting beside her. The seven year old hadn't really relished the idea of sitting beside the fiery preteen. It didn't help that Lita had called Reenie a kid, if in a roundabout manner. When all of the girls had come into lunch, she had joked that she should have setup a kid's table for Reenie and Raye.

"Hmmm... It might be quieter," Raye unexpectedly said, pointedly looking at Mina who was currently laying out her boy-hunting plans for anyone who'd listen.

'They act like nothing happened though!' Reenie angrily whined to herself all of a sudden. 'Okay, so I goofed, but Mina doesn't want to talk about it and Amy's acting like I'm not even here!' She knew Raye was still upset with her and while Lita had apparently forgiven her, Reenie did feel guilty for using her cookies in such a way.

Serena... Serena didn't bear thinking about. 'Man, no Darien...' the little girl complained. It was very unfair that her cousin would keep her away from Darien. She wasn't currently brave enough to voice that particular opinion though. 'My ears are still ringing from Auntie's phone call...'

"Reenie..." the soft voice pulled her from her brooding mood. She looked up to see Serena regarding her. "Not hungry?" Reenie shook her head. "Had too much breakfast?" The youngster shrugged. "You know, I thought you'd burn that off chasing after Amy." Reenie noticed that the blue-haired girl's head come around and that Amy was giving her still older friend a stern look.

"Yeah," Mina agreed, which earned her a glare from Amy as well, "Oh don't look like a sour puss, Amy. At least, it kept your nose out of a textbook for a while." Her genius friend sniffed indignantly.

"There's nothing wrong with reading... Your grades would be much better, Miss Aino, if you spent more time studying than stud hunting."

"Yeah but one's more way fun than the other," Mina pointed out. "Oh wait, Greg actually hunted you up."

"You keep Gregory out of this," the blue-haired teen snapped tartly, her cheeks turning pink. The others grinned.

"Yeah, okay... Anyway, Reenie, Serena's right. You did run around after Amy quite a bit. Actually you chased me down too." The ribbon-wearing blonde grinned. "That was quite a race." She got a thoughtful look and asked, "You ever try out for the cross-country team?"

"No..."

"Well, maybe you should. I bet you'd do really well," the beribboned blonde speculated.

"Better than me?" Serena interjected.

"You run everywhere though," Lita countered.

"That's because she's late all the time." Raye grinned as Serena glowered. "But I think Reenie could do well. She certainly doesn't get winded like some people I know." Her grin grew as Serena growled in annoyance. "Say, I was telling Lita that I figured out why you wouldn't wanna go back to normal and why you like being old."

"Why's that?" Serena asked.

"Boobs!"

"Excuse me?!" the blonde demanded.

"Boobs," the raven-haired priestess replied, "You know, they..."

"Raye! I know what they are!" Serena retorted while turning red. "And for your information, missy, it was what I did to Darien last night that I'm gonna miss." That comment drew Mina, Amy, and Reenie's attention.

"Point taken," the raven-haired preteen agreed. "I wish I had had a camera!"

"Really? What did she do?" Mina asked with stars in her eyes.

"Told him exactly what she thought of him, that's what. Especially considering he didn't want her dating another guy."

"She means Dave, the guy she STOLE off of me!" the ribbon-wearing teen clarified. "I promise you that won't happen again." 'It only happened that time _because_ of those cookies,' she rationalized.

"So you just wanna stay big just to be mean to Darien?" Reenie asked.

"Of course not," Serena replied in such a stern tone that the seven year old immediately regretted her remark. "Honestly, it's just that some things needed saying... and I said them. I mean Darien doesn't wanna date me, so why shouldn't I..." Serena started to tap her chest and froze.

"What?"

"Urk!" was the meatball-headed blonde's only response before her form shifted.

Gray streaks vanished, fat dissolved into trim lines, and Serena's chest to her chagrin had a substantial withdrawal made against it. Raye, Reenie noticed, was watching with anticipation as her friend shifted from middle-age through young adulthood to a petite fourteen year old. She noticed as well that now she and Serena shared the same height.

"Praise the gods! I'm next!" the twelve year old priestess squealed and started eating again, looking much happier.

- - - - -

Sometime later, Serena Tsukino stepped out into the early afternoon sunlight of the Cherry Hill Temple and looked around. The late night snowfall had already begun to melt. Chad was busy cleaning the courtyard and Grandpa Hino was nowhere in sight. She glanced down as someone took her hand and was a little surprised to see it was Reenie. She gave the youngster's hand a little squeeze and then said, "Well... that was an exciting night."

"Definitely," Lita seconded as she stepped up to Serena's left and shouldered her overnight bag. "I guess I should go home and check on my plants."

"Yes, I need to return home as well," Amy piped up. "I need to catch up on reading. I'm only eight chapters ahead. Also, my mother will likely want to wish me a happy New Year." The blue-haired teen took a few steps and turned around. "Thanks for the food, Lita. And letting us come, Raye."

"No problem, Amy," the priestess replied as she stepped to Serena's right beside Reenie. The meatball-headed blonde was amused to note that Reenie inched a little closer. Amy silently regarded Reenie and Serena for a moment.

"Well, I'm off!" Mina remarked, vaulting off of the porch and onto the ground beside Amy, "I need to..." her voice trailed off. "Oh my..." The others looked around to see what had caught Mina's attention. Sure enough, it was two teenage boys.

"Well, I think I recognize one of them," Lita commented. '_He looks like my last boyfriend._'

"Really?!" the ribbon-wearing teen squeaked and then grabbed her brunette friend by the wrist. "Come on, girlfriend, and introduce me then!"

Serena chuckled as one of her friends dragged the other one off. "See you guys later, I guess!" Lita called.

"Same here!" Mina called over her shoulder before speeding up.

"I'm off," Amy declared and hurried toward the stairs.

Serena turned, ready to make some comment about rats deserting a sinking ship, and noticed that Raye wasn't even paying attention. She was watching Chad, who was in turn watching her. Then Raye did a very unusual thing, she playfully winked at Chad.

"Well," Serena remarked dryly, "Now I know who has a hot date tonight."

"Don't you need to get home, Serena?" Raye suggested. Serena noticed that her raven-haired friend didn't deny the charge.

"Ready?" Serena asked her cousin.

"I guess so," Reenie and then added, "Auntie can't get any madder, right?"

"No, but maybe I can..." The pigtailed blonde caught Raye's eye and sighed. "Well... let's go." As the duo walked towards the stairs, Serena asked, "Did you make any more New Year's resolutions?"

"Yeah... did you?"

"Yep!"

"What?"

Serena smiled, "I have resolved not to call you a pink spore."

"Even when you're mad?"

"Even when I'm mad." Serena smiled. "What about you?"

Reenie just grinned and hummed to herself... She'd never tell.

End of Chapter 11

Epilog follows...

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


	12. Epilog

**Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble**  
By Douglas Helm and "_Tuxedo_" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "_Lita's New Year's Cookie Scramble_" are copyrighted ©2006-2007 ShoujoFiction .com domain by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.

**This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comments are welcomed and encouraged.**

**Epilogue**

**R**eenie Tsukino stared up into the darkness of her bedroom and listened to the late night sounds outside her bedroom window. She could hear her next-door neighbor's dog barking at something. She also heard a warning beeper as a truck backed up as well as a far distance siren.

When things grew calm again, the seven year old sat up and quietly climbed out of bed. She felt wide-awake despite the lateness of the hour, probably because she'd been put to bed almost as soon as she'd arrived home with Serena.

Reenie crept to her bedroom door, slowly opened it, and peered through it. Making sure no one was about, she slipped out and padded down the dark hallway to the bathroom. After using the facilities and washing her hands, she came back, pausing momentarily and staring at her fourteen year old cousin's closed bedroom door.

'Auntie would kill you,' the child told herself, 'She told you to stay in bed unless you needed the toilet. I'd be in Serena's bed.' The temptation passed. She didn't want to get Serena into trouble if her aunt caught her out of her own bed. Going back into her bedroom, Reenie closed the door, sighed, and crawled back into bed.

'Serena was right,' the pink-haired girl mused as she tried to will herself back to sleep, 'Auntie did take a chunk out of my hide.' She grimaced at the painful memory. 'She didn't have to spank me in front of Serena though. And Auntie's dragging me around to all the girls tomorrow to apologize and tell them about my punishment.' She groaned a little and pulled her pillow over her face. 'And I'm grounded for a month!' That meant little time to play with her friend Melissa. It was not Serena's fault. The teen had argued for only a week but Ellen had been very firm.

Reenie gave a guilty start as she heard her door open. Holding her breath, she listened wondering if it was her aunt coming in to check on her. After a few seconds, she felt the bed sink slightly as somebody sat on the edge.

"Can't sleep, huh?" came the soft voice of Serena.

Reenie pushed her pillow away and looked at up her cousin sitting in her pajamas. "No, I slept lots this afternoon."

"Want me to stay with you?"

Reenie moved over to make room and smiled a little as her pigtailed cousin got under the covers then hugged her. Reenie returned the hug. They lay like that for a few moments before Reenie asked, "Serena, are you still sore at me?"

The teenager was quiet for a long time. "No." There was a pause and then the blonde continued, "I'm actually rather proud of you."

"Really?"

"Sure," her cousin replied then explained, "You knew you did something wrong and tried to correct it by helping Amy when she needed it and by telling Mom the truth." Reenie's mood lightened. The seven year old snuggled closer to Serena and closed her eyes.

"Tell me a story?"

Serena grinned and hugged her little cousin before starting to rub the little girl's back soothingly. "All right, kiddo, but you need to go to sleep right after." Reenie made an agreeable sound. The teenager thought for a moment and then began softly to speak, "_A long time ago, there was a kingdom on the Moon. That kingdom was ruled by a wise and beautiful queen who had a daughter..._"

Outside Reenie's bedroom door, Ellen Tsukino stood silently listening. Shaking her head, she made her way back to bed. 'Serena will make a good mom someday. Now if we could only get her to be this responsible all the time...' She gave a mental snort. 'But then Serena wouldn't be Serena, would she?' And with that, the mother of two, and unknowing grandmother of one, went to bed feeling a little more content with the world.

The End

**Authors' Afterwords**

This story changed quite a bit since the first chapter was laid down last year. The biggest change was the shift from the original Sailor Moon universe to the DiC® universe. Various chapters went through some revision of one extent or another. In other words, it was a tough story to write.

One of the more fun challenges to write was a story focused on the other characters rather than just Reenie or Serena, as many of our other stories tend to do. The trick was to get Reenie to do everything she needed to do without making her seem like a major brat that needed to be hauled onto the carpet at the first opportunity. Yes, she ïs in trouble but that was never our intent.

Lita's view is probably the key one. Each girl has their own vision of what happened. How each will perceive it (bad or good) in the long term is a matter for debate. Lita, however, started the entire thing by wishing to be younger, to have the carefree life of a child with no responsibilities and a loving family. In the final analysis, she believes that what happened to her and the other Sailor Scouts was a good experience. Nevertheless, as she told Reenie, even though she liked being younger, she wouldn't want to grow up all over again.

We have been writing for quite a while now. We know many authors who were active when we started who have since have left the community of fanfiction or moved onto other series. We've started writing in other anime series as well, but we've also created our own new worlds, e.g. _World of Valeria™_. And if we write all the stories we've talked about over the years, we'd be here for quite awhile to come. ☺

Cheers,

_Douglas Helm_ and _Will Wolfshohl_  
August 2007

Shoujo Fiction™ and the Shoujo Fiction™ logo are a Trademark of Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Copyrighted ©2002-2003, All Rights Reserved.


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